The Wizarding Detective
by White Angel of Auralon
Summary: Harry finds out about Dumbledore's manipulations and flees after the DoM incident to Japan. What does the 'Holmes of the New Century' have to do with Harry's destiny? Harry / Detective Conan x-over
1. Stranded

**Hi everybody. This is the first chapter of my new story (for more information, see my profile or read the following summary). This is a Harry Potter / Detective Conan x-over. For those who are not that familiar with the DC universe, I hope I describe the characters of DC enough so you wouldn't be at a disadvantage.**

**Permanent Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and Detective Conan.**

**Summary: After finding out that his so called friends and Dumbledore betrayed him, Harry flees to Japan to continue his magical education far away from Dumbledore's manipulation. With Sirius help he tries to prepare for the fight against both Dumbledore and Voldemort. But what has the 'Holmes of the new Century' to do with Harry's destiny?**

**I hope you like it. Happy reading.**

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><p><strong>Stranded<strong>

It was a rainy day; befitting his mood. Why did his whole life suck so much? First he lost his parents to that maniac that was deceiving the whole community of elitist pureblood wizards at home that he was the best thing since Merlin happening to wizarding kind. October 31st was a miserable day for Harry Potter. Many people celebrated Halloween on this day, especially for wizards it was an important holiday. He had looked up the meaning of the day in the original wizarding culture. It was the day where the veil between the planes of the living and the dead was thinnest. But for him it meant something else; the murder of his parents at the hands of Voldemort, leading to him being taken to his mother's sister's family, where he had been neglected and abused for many years.

No one was helping him while growing up. No one seemed to notice the abused little boy. No one recognized that the little black haired boy desperately needed help. He had always been small, skinny and underfed. The teachers at school should have noticed that something was amiss. But nobody did. He now had suspicions to the why, but it didn't help him; it was in the past. Something he couldn't change as he had found out the hard way.

Then, finally, it seemed that things were looking up for him. He found out he was a wizard on his 11th birthday. The discovery of the wonders of magic had entrapped him and, for some time, his common sense had been blinded by this new exciting world. On Halloween, again, a troll had been let into the school, safest place in Britain indeed, he thought sarcastically. He had miraculously survived the encounter with the help of his best friends' help. Only thinking of Hermione and Ron now hurt. Why did they do it? Why did they betray him? Hell, he had saved Hermione's life that day. And Ron had been responsible for her being in that dangerous situation. Why did she betray him and sided with Ron? Had she been in on the plot from the beginning or had she been involved later?

He looked up to the sky. It was dark. The rain clouds prevented seeing the stars. Well, he doubted with all the lights of the city it would be possible to see them. All around him people were hurrying to get out of the rain. Hurrying to get to their homes. Home, it was a term that had been alien to him for most of his life. Really, which teenager regarded his school as home? A desperate one; that was the simple answer to that question. He, Harry Potter, had been desperate to escape the hell that was his life with his so called family.

Family indeed; what kind of family imprisoned one of its members in a small room with bars in front of the window, a cat flap for getting food and many locks on the door; all that just to keep a twelve year old boy imprisoned? No, they weren't his family. Only people he had the questionable honour to be related to by blood; nothing more. They were maniacs that pretended to be normal. Normal indeed. He could only laugh ironically about it. Normal people wouldn't have abused a child just because it was different. But people were stupid. He had experience with stupidity.

Second year on Halloween the chamber of secrets had been opened. He had gotten the culprit, saved Ginny in the end but not before he had been tormented by nearly the whole school with their suspicions of him being the culprit. And none of the adults that were supposed to look out for him had done anything to help him. No, his oh so reliable Potions teacher had thought it would be nice to make him look like the culprit. Definitely good comments during the meeting in the fraud's office. During a duelling club he told his student, who coincidentally was a spoiled brat and Harry's sworn enemy, how to summon a dangerous snake. Just to have Harry look like an idiot. His life simply sucked.

Of course nobody believed him that he had stopped said snake from attacking a fellow student. No, they accused him of setting the snake on the student he saved. Even, and especially, the saved student; just because speaking with snakes was considered dark. Really, the British wizards needed a reality check. And a competent ministry while he thought about improving them. Just chucking a man into Azkaban because he had been suspected to have opened the Chamber in his youth was simply sick. Not even giving Hagrid a chance to defend himself.

Third year started horrible with his running away from Privet Drive after the incident with 'Aunt Marge', how he hated the vile woman and her dog Ripper. Sirius Black was after him to kill him. Ha, biggest joke of the world. The only person to not want him dead was Sirius. He wanted to protect Harry. Well Remus also was on Harry's side, but he trusted the manipulative old bastard too much. Harry thought that was a term too long for too many names Dumbledore, though it was suiting the old coot perfectly. He would call him MOB. Fitting.

After Sirius had escaped on Buckbeak the Hippogriff, crushing Harry's chance to have a real home for the first time since his parents died, damn Fudge the fool, damn Dumbledore for not doing his duty as head of the Wizengamot, damn magical society and their lack of common sense, their lack of conscience for law and order, his fourth year had come and gone and of course there had been a new incident on Halloween. That holiday surely was as cursed for him as the position of DADA teacher was at Hogwarts.

The goblet of fire spit out his name as the irregular forth champion of the tournament. Now he was told he couldn't get out, even if he didn't put his name into the goblet. He had to compete. His life was slandered in the press that year, he was nearly grilled by a dragon, drowned in an ice-cold lake in February of all times of the year, really wizards were just stupid, and then kidnapped at the end of the third task to help resurrect Voldemort, the pain in the ass.

But instead of doing everything to prepare the population for the new threat, the idiot Fudge decided Voldemort wasn't back but he, Harry, was a liar and systematically destroyed his name in the Daily Prophet. He would make sure that Fudge regretted the day he came across Harry Potter. He would sue him for all his worth. After finding out his political and financial power in the world he would use it.

It was truly a shame that he hadn't been able to show his Slytherin side earlier on, but it had been vital for his plans to keep under the radar.

After that farce of a trial, being more or less imprisoned with Sirius at number 12 Grimmauld place, he returned to Hogwarts. Really that year was the worst ever. O.W.L.s were looming at the horizon, making the teachers going crazy with the workload for their year. The new defence teacher was out for his head and did everything to make his life miserable. Stupid, bigoted, evil Ministry hag. Really he had enjoyed the fate the traitor Hermione had thought up for her. After his O.W.L.s he had had this nice vision, curtsy of Voldy, that the dark bastard had Sirius in his clutches.

Thankfully Harry had had the mirror to contact Sirius. Not even his so called best friends knew about it. Without the mirror Harry's and Sirius' plan wouldn't have had a chance of success. Harry had to grin. The hat did know what he was talking about, that he would have been a good match for Slytherin house and that he had a good head on his shoulders. If you had to grow up with the Dursleys, who punished you for being better at school than their useless idiot of a son, you learned to hide your abilities. Harry was smart, really smart. His analytical abilities would have made Hermione green with envy.

If he had the clues he needed, he would put them together to get the complete picture. It had worked during his years at Hogwarts well enough. Thankfully nobody had realized it. First year he had been the one to put together the clues of the quest around the Philosopher's Stone. He had known who Flamel was two weeks after Hagrid had slipped up. But he hadn't told his friends immediately, thinking it would be a good way to keep them busy. He hadn't originally wanted to go after the stone; he had just loved to solve the riddle. But once he had realized that Hagrid had probably slipped to an outsider, he had had to act.

While the dragon had been around and been a problem, he had not thought about the strangeness of the situation too much. He had been a bit preoccupied. But after the obstacle course, it was nothing else, after all, how could McGonagall justify telling them that the stone was well protected if three first years could best it? No it had been a set up by somebody and after his talk with the headmaster he had been sure it had been him. Too bad for the headmaster that he loved solving riddles. He just had to pretend he didn't know.

Then in second year he had put together the clues to where the Chamber of Secrets was located. He had known it had to be a snake, but he couldn't figure out what kind of snake. After the third mysterious hearing of the voice he had realized that much. But all the books he had searched had nothing on a snake that could petrify. He still didn't know from which book Hermione had the information about the basilisk.

Well, Hermione's reaction was one more reason not to show his abilities at Hogwarts after he found out, that she didn't take competition for the top spot too well. During the first months at Hogwarts, Harry had secretly researched ways to get away from the Dursleys in the library. He already knew the Muggle laws for his case. But he didn't know what the laws in the wizarding world said. While his research cut into his time to do his essays with more effort, so he just did them so that he would be average in his classes, it provided Harry with much needed information.

Really it had been a blessing that he hadn't been friends with Hermione before Halloween. She would have been suspicious of the amount of time he spent over books that didn't have anything to do with their school work. But Ron was just a lazy ass. He would leave him behind in the common room, playing a game of exploding snap or chess with one of the other boys. Really easy - especially if you had a loyal friend to keep him off your back.

Neville truly would have made a great Hufflepuff. He had offered Ron to play chess when Harry needed to look things up that he didn't Ron want to know about. He had always had some problems to completely trust people. A remainder of his time with the Dursleys no doubt. But Neville was different. The shy boy had an aura around him that told Harry he was trustworthy. But never underestimate a Longbottom. Something even the Death Eaters had learned. Harry was really proud of his friend. He had made huge prowess in his work after Harry had started the DA.

Harry figured out, that he had to contact Gringotts regarding his parents' wills. What he found out made him very wary of the headmaster. When he got his father's invisibility cloak back on Christmas that year he saw the unlimited possibilities it gave him. So, while the other boys in his dormitory slept, Harry snuck out into the library and made copies of the books outside the restricted section. That one time he had been there and found the wailing book had taught him not to push his luck too far. And for now having the normal books at his disposal was more than enough material to learn.

The copies made sure he had something he could read during the summer holidays when he was confined at Durskaban. And by using his invisibility cloak he managed to not arouse suspicion at his relatives. The cloak never left his person. It was a core element in his future plans after all. So, learning as much as he could in secret, asking the Hogwarts ghosts many questions, which they were delighted to answer, really it was a fountain of experience he could profit from, why nobody else thought about it, he couldn't understand. He learned many things that way, things that had been forgotten over the times. Well, he needed every advantage he could get against Voldemort.

After Sirius escaped, he added to Harry's already developed doubts about the so called leader of the light. How he wished he could have defended himself in that farce of a trial but letting Dumbledore do it for him, added to his cover. Soon he would be out of the MOB's control. He just needed his O.W.L.s so he could get emancipated. A little known rule for heirs of old pureblood houses was that they could get emancipated if they reached certain results in their O.W.L.s. And it was also true for heirs that were halfbloods. Well, as long as the not pureblood parent was magical.

Sirius had helped Harry with his studies during his stay at Grimmauld place during summer before his fifth year and then during the Christmas holidays. Sirius was determined to make up for the time he had missed out on in Harry' life. With the Black library and the Black fortune at his disposal, Sirius had taught him the things that Harry needed to know to get along in the world he had been born into.

After being denied a trial for so long, he had no illusions that MOB could be trusted. But with his life at stake he couldn't really do anything about it. He had been between a rock and a hard place after Voldemort's return. So being imprisoned at his hated home, as it was the only way to have contact with his godson, he had made plans of his own and was impressed to find out about Harry's hidden deviousness.

It had been a coincidence that he found out. One night Harry had been in the library researching some things in the unique books there, the real part of the library that only family members could enter, not the one Molly Weasley and her kids were cleaning during the day. He had found out that his grandmother was a Black by birth from the family tapestry and so he had access to parts of the house that were reserved to the family. The Blacks had been paranoid bastards.

Sirius had been unable to sleep that night and had been informed by the house that a family member was in the library. Sirius had been worried and curious at the same time, so he had gone there to see who was reading there and what. Finding his godson reading a book about common wards, ancient runes and their importance in wards and really nasty wards had been a big surprise.

He had asked Harry to explain. And Harry had explained. From his deception of his true personality, his underachieving at school until it was time to take the O.W.L.s, his secret studies, his problems at Privet Drive, his suspicions of Dumbledore, the danger he had been confronted with every year at school and the guilt over Cedric's death. Sirius had understood. Having a similar family background, he truly understood being abused and growing up unloved. He had then offered Harry his help to reach his goal in his O.W.L.s. While Remus had been the smart one of the marauders, Sirius was a powerful wizard.

He knew his stuff and he took teaching Harry very serious. In the basement of number twelve, there was a training room that the Blacks had used for generations to train their children during the holidays. He explained the trace and the rules for underage magic. He knew all the loopholes and he supported Harry to practice. He also managed to improve Harry's knowledge of Potions a lot. It had after all been his strong area during his pranking time at Hogwarts.

James had been the genius in Transfiguration, Remus was the expert in Defence and Charms and Sirius was the master of Potions and Ancient Runes. Peter was the lookout and minion.

Sirius rose to being the only adult Harry trusted unconditionally. But still. Seeing Sirius faking his death by falling through the veil of death was really hard. Oh how sweet had it been to destroy all those trinkets in the MOB's office.

Sirius, being the first-born son and heir to one of the most prestigious pureblood houses had recognized the meaning of each of those lovely trinkets when he had waited for Harry in Dumbledore's office after the third task of the Tournament. He had told Harry in no uncertain terms, that those things had to be destroyed before he could get away from Britain. They allowed Dumbledore too much control over Harry and his location. And having just experienced an admittedly faked, but nonetheless cruel, loss he had no problems leashing out at all of the office. He would like to see the MOB trying to track him down now. But hearing his friends talking in the hospital wing when they didn't know he was there had hurt terribly.

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><p><strong>Flashback<strong>

Harry, tired of being stared at by the rest of the school, had taken to walk with his invisibility cloak on. He was on his way to the infirmary to visit the others who had accompanied him to the Ministry. He couldn't really describe how really glad he was to talk to Sirius after everything had been over. Just hearing his voice and seeing his face had soothed his nerves. It had looked too real. Then being possessed by Voldemort didn't help him either. He had reached the open door and was about to take off the cloak when he heard an argument. He got closer and saw Ron, Hermione and Professor Dumbledore talking. The others seemed to be fast asleep.

"Professor, how long do we have to keep up this farce? I mean I like being paid for pretending to be Potter's best friend but it is getting more and more dangerous. The idiot just can't stand not being in the middle of trouble. If I don't get a raise of my payment, I am going to quit." Ron said.

"Now, now, Mr Weasley. I am sure we can come to an agreement. You need to keep Harry ignorant of his influence. Between you and Miss Granger he never developed the urge to learn all he could about magic. He didn't want to show up either of you to keep your friendship. With the burden Black out of the way I can push Harry to become the martyr we need to get rid of Tom. I have already faked his will. All the money the Potters have will be divided between the Weasleys for their services, you Miss Granger, and me. But you have to act convincingly until the end." Dumbledore said.

"Don't worry, Professor." Hermione piped up. "Harry is too stupid to find out anything, I mean, he always relies on me to do research and Ron distracts him with Quidditch or other not studying related topics. Next year we will start with Ginny's part to seduce him. She should be able to occupy his mind sufficiently. With Professor Snape opening the link to You-Know-Who, when the time comes, Harry will pull him with him into death. As Harry is the last descendant of the Potters nobody but us will inherit the fortune."

"Very good, another summer in Surrey while being miserable for the mutt's death will further play into my hands. Remember, Harry can't find out about this. He as a horcrux has to die eventually and I intend to make him hunt the others while I play the wise mentor. Nothing can stop the plan."

Harry secretly crept back. His heart hurt. His friends were traitors and in league with Dumbledore. Thankfully Sirius was alive and had already planned their escape to Japan. Sirius had found out about Dumbledore planning to kill them both shortly after being forced to stay at Grimmauld Place. Then he had made all the necessary precautions to fake his death sometime after Harry's O.W.L.s and then take Harry away from the Dursleys. They would disappear in the muggle world for some time while Harry got ready to face of Voldemort without MOB's interference. They would never find him in the anonymity that was Tokyo.

**Flashback end**

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><p>So that was how he had landed himself in Tokyo, district Beika. He had used his invisibility cloak to disappear from platform 9 ¾ after the train had entered the station. He didn't even cross the barrier to the muggle part of the platform. He feared Moody could be there and see him through his cloak. But a little illegal apparition, taught to him by Sirius during their nightly training sessions, got him away. Really, why nobody thought of teaching young witches and wizards how to simply escape from danger was beyond him. No underage witch or wizard could be expected to successfully defend against a dark wizard with the things taught at Hogwarts. So why not let them learn apparating after third year? He would never understand the Ministry.<p>

But nobody had detected a thing. A short apparition to the outside of the station and he had escaped his watchers. He had taken the muggle bus from Kings Cross station to Charring Cross Road, where Sirius had waited in his animagus form. They had gone to Gringotts, the only place Sirius would not be arrested straight away, and Harry finally heard his parents' wills. He had been so angry hearing that he never should have been given to Petunia.

As the goblins were in charge of the inheritance department in the wizarding world, they would make sure that MOB was sued for deliberately ignoring the will of a Lord. This would cost MOB a lot of galleons. Harry was just grateful that the goblins had always denied MOB any access to the Potter vaults as only a Potter by blood was allowed to enter them. And Harry was the last Potter. So his enormous fortune had been safe from the greedy bastard. Thankfully the goblins had provided a neat little potion that enabled him and Sirius to learn Japanese perfectly in three days. With their destination in mind this would come in handy.

They had also ensured that all their financial business would be done from the Tokyo branch of Gringotts in the future. All former keys to Harry's trust vault had been called back magically and his money had been transferred to Tokyo. Of course this had cost a small fee of 100 galleons but it was worth the effort. The goblins would keep his secret under customer confidentiality and MOB would be unable to find him.

The next morning Sirius - under glamour and with new muggle identity cards - and himself, also with a new muggle identity, had boarded the plane to Tokyo to start anew. Harry knew he had gotten the requested O.W.L.s to get emancipated and he intended to file the paperwork through the Chinese Ministry of Magic. It would be too easy for the MOB to track him in Japan if he used that Ministry and China was known for being more tolerant with underage wizards if they proved to be capable to take care of themselves.

Harry had thought how his so called friends would react when they found out about his scores on his tests. Especially Hermione. He grinned and wished he could listen to her reaction when she found out that he had beaten her in every subject, which he was really sure he had.

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><p><strong>That was the first chapter. Please tell me what you think. And I would like to have a beta for the story as I am not a native English speaker. If anybody is interested, please send me a PM.<strong>


	2. Shock over OWLs

**Hi, as this chapter was already done and checked, I decided to update this story today. The next update will probably be in two weeks.**

**I thank all those who wrote me reviews and to answer one question I got, the story starts half a year before the manga starts. But you will find out more soon enough :D**

**Now happy reading.**

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><p><strong>Shock over O.W.L.s<strong>

Minerva McGonagall was looking forward to the results of her former fifth year lions. She had especially high hopes for Hermione Granger. The girl was really smart for a muggleborn witch. Just this morning the results had come in for all the fifth years. She was sure that she would be able to brag to her colleagues that she had the top student of the year in her house. She started to look over the results. She scowled somewhat at Lavender Browns results. The girl was more interested in fashion, fortune telling and beauty products than in her education. Well she had to deal with her marks.

Seamus Finnegan was average with a somewhat better mark in charms. Finally the boy had overcome that lack of talent he had shown in the beginning somewhat. As the results for the whole year had been sent to her as deputy headmistress, she started with the students at the bottom of their year and worked herself through them to the top students. Sighing she read the results for Ronald Weasley. The boy didn't even try to do well. While he had more O.W.L.s than his twin brothers, it was clear, that Fred and George were way more talented. It was a shame the two had left Hogwarts before they could take their N.E.W.T.s, but she could really understand their reasons. Umbridge had done much damage to the students and she was dreading the Defence Against the Dark Arts results of the O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. students.

Why Albus had insisted to make Weasley a prefect and not Potter or Longbottom she would never understand. She had preferred one of them. But the final decision was the headmaster's. She smiled at Longbottom's marks. While the boy simply couldn't keep his calm in Severus' classes, he was a prodigy in Pomona's. He had even achieved the best results of the year in that class. Well, next year he could drop Potions. She was already proud of the boy that he had managed an A in potions. And his Defence mark was amazingly also an O.

During reading the results she noticed that all the students that had been on the list for the so called DA had achieved exceptional grades in their Defence against the Dark Arts O.W.L.s. She really wanted to find out what exactly Harry Potter had done to achieve this.

The list went on. Predictably many Slytherins like Crabbe and Goyle got bottom spots in the ranking. They wouldn't be able to take many subjects when they returned in September. And here people said Slytherin was the house of the ambitious and cunning students. There were few who proved it. Draco Malfoy to her annoyance was in the top five. Fourth best student to be precise. He had proven his choosing as prefect if only based on his grades. He was the top fifth year student in Slytherin. Now she only had the last three left. Third was Terry Boot of Ravenclaw house.

Filius would be happy with that result. She opened the envelope for the second best student and then blinked in shock. Hermione Granger was only second best? Who could have topped her marks? She knew of nobody to be better than her star student. She ripped open the envelope for the top student and couldn't believe her eyes. How was this possible? Harry Potter was the top student for the O.W.L.s. And how the hell did he take the exams for Muggle Studies when he didn't attend the classes? She took some deep breaths and calmed down. Okay, he was muggle raised so he knew everything about them, but she should have noticed his exams plan. She took a closer look. Also Ancient Runes and Arithmancy O.W.L.s. And the most disturbing part was he had gotten straight Os. Top marks in every subject. Best student in every subject but Herbology where Neville Longbottom was the best of all students by two points. Even in History of Magic Harry had come out on top and that was when he had gotten his vision.

Nobody would believe this. But it was impossible for him to have cheated. The quills in the exams were charmed to prevent this. And why had nobody noticed that he took three extra exams? She tried to remember. Those three exams had been after she had been stunned during the Astronomy exams. She couldn't have noticed. And every student could just turn up for an O.W.L. even if he didn't attend the classes. The examiner must have thought he had taken them, his grades proving them right. But how? Her line of thought was interrupted by a brown owl that soared into her office through the window. She recognized it as one of the ICW owls by the crest on the collar around the owl's neck. What would the ICW want with her? She took the letter from the owl and offered her a treat before the owl took off again.

She opened the letter after checking the country that sent it. China, that was unusual. She got another shock. Harry Potter, who had just somehow aced the O.W.L. exams, had gotten emancipated; in China of all places. How did the boy get to China? She had to tell Albus. If Potter was not under the protection of the wards in Privet Drive they would fall and he could be attacked by Voldemort. She ran from her office to Dumbledore's as fast as she could.

If she had stayed she would have seen the next brown owl flying into her office. As nobody was there to take the letter from her, she just dropped it on the desk and left the office again. The letter was short but it would shake Britain to the core. The letter held the withdrawal from Hogwarts of one Harry James Potter. And McGonagall would not find it until one week later, because she was too busy looking for Harry on Dumbledore's orders.

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><p>Harry stood in front of an apartment building where Sirius had bought an apartment under his new muggle name. While Sirius was a pureblood wizard, he had always had a fascination with muggles just to spite his parents. He even took Muggle Studies at school. So he was one of the few wizards in England who could really blend in with muggles. Harry entered the building, took the elevator to the eighteenth floor and went to the apparment Srius had bought. It was number 1814. On each floor there were sixteen appartments, each owned by their inhabitants. The company that had built the building was in charge of the maintenance and cleaning though, so the people living there didnt have to organize them. Harry took out the key he had gotten. From next door he could hear the door opening. A small girl with dark brown hair came out, followed by a dark haired woman, probably the girl's mother.<p>

"Come on, Mum, I want to get to the Kamen Yaiba show at the shopping centre." The girl said excitedly.

"Of course, Ayumi. Oh, we seem to have a new neighbour." The woman said.

Harry was very grateful for the potion now. He could understand the two perfectly.

"Hello, nice to meet you. I'm Harrison Black, your new neighbour. My uncle Simon and I are just moving in today." He said bowing as he had read in a guide for Japan.

"Very nice to meet you, Mr Black. I'm Mikoto Yoshida and this is my daughter Ayumi."

"Pleasure." Harry answered smiling.

The little girl Ayumi smiled back. She seemed excited to have a new neighbour.

"Where have you lived before, Mr Black?" She asked.

"I was born in England, but I have lived in Australia for two years after my parents died when I was just a year old, then three years in America, one year in China, three in France, then I was in a boarding school for five years in Scotland and now I am here." He said.

"Wow, you must have seen so many things." Ayumi said impressed.

"You speak really good Japanese for someone who had never before been to Japan, Mr Black." Mrs Yoshida commented.

"Well, I have learned Japanese for four years now and I have somewhat of a talent for languages. So it isn't that hard for me to communicate here. I intend to enrol high school in the next days. My uncle is getting the formalities done at the moment."

"So you live with your uncle?" Mrs Yoshida asked interested.

"Yes. He raised me after my parents' death. They named him my godfather and me being to so many different countries is due to his job. He works for a company who has many branches in different countries and has to travel a lot because of this. Well, I think that helped me becoming really independent."

...

That was the story the goblins had provided. They even made up the paperwork for Sirius and Harry. They faked Harry's tests for the muggle subjects so he could enter with his age group at high school. Harry had only taken the tests for the last year but his results were proof, that he hadn't neglected his studies. When Sirius asked how he had managed that without being discovered, Harry had grinned and told him that an invisibility cloak, a photographic memory and relatives, who didn't really care for their son's education, were neat tools to get information.

He explained that he had sneaked into Dudley's room regularly to borrow his school books during the holidays when his magical things had been locked in the cupboard under the stairs. Well, at least they thought they were locked away. The Dursleys never even thought that he could want to continue his normal education so they never thought of measures to ensure he was unable to do so. As he had figured after his first year at Hogwarts, magic wasn't everything in life and he wanted to be able to choose his way himself; and not be dictated what to do. Nobody knew this. He hadn't even told Ron or Hermione. Now he was glad he didn't.

Well, as Dudley never did any work for school during the summer he never knew a thing. And Petunia and Vernon tried very hard to ignore their nephew if possible. So Harry had taken the books from Dudley, hidden under his cloak, left the house to walk around the neighbourhood and found a place where he could study undisturbed. He just needed to place the invisibility cloak over him and he could read as much as he wanted to. It had been a blessing to pass time once they had locked him in his room, never thinking he could do something in the room that benefited him.

Harry had also taken the time to learn some muggle tricks. Fred and George had shown him that being able to pick locks was incredibly useful. He also had looked up some muggle magical tricks. It was neat knowledge to have and his skill in pickpocketing was not to be underestimated. He had used it to get back at the Dursleys by taking the money they should have spent on his care from his uncle's wallet. Never too much at a time, but as they had seen fit to use him as cheap labour around the house, he thought it was his right to be paid. He had collected a nice amount of money and it had been enough to get some fitting clothes, only one set and second hand to not arouse suspicion, and he could explain that one set with his stipend for Hogwarts if they ever asked. The rest he used for food, a blessing when Dudley had been put on a diet, and a computer course that had been offered at the library after his third year at Hogwarts.

The Dursleys had been too afraid what Sirius would do to them if they hadn't let Harry come and go during the day, so his absence hadn't been questioned and as he only spoke the absolute necessary with the Dursleys, they never knew his abilities. He had also done something for his bad reputation, thanks to the Dursleys. He didn't stick to their horrible story of him attending St. Brutus. When he was asked, he told he attended a private school in Scotland for highly talented children and that his parents had enrolled him when he was an infant as they too had been students there. He faked confusion at the story of St. Brutus. Let the Dursleys deal with their lies. He wouldn't put up with it anymore, not with the threat of Sirius hanging over their heads.

Funnily the Dursleys never found out why the neighbours were now looking strangely at them. Even Petunia with her nosiness couldn't get the reason out of them. Many were already despising them for letting Dudley beat up the children and not doing anything. And after Harry helped one boy who had the bad luck to run into Dudley and his gang and brought the boy home, the parents told everybody that Harry Potter was a nice boy and that Petunia and Vernon were outright lying about him.

After taking his entrance test, Harry got the qualification for second year of high school without a problem. After discussing it with Sirius in the plane, they had decided, that Harry would enrol at Teitan High in Beika. The goblins had provided them with information on all schools in Tokyo, magical and muggle. The school had a very good reputation. His magical studies would be done during the weekends with Sirius. Both knew if Harry turned up in the register of a magical school, even under a false name, the MOB could be able to locate him. He would never check the muggle high schools though. The only thing Harry needed to be able to do was passing his N.E.W.T.s in two years' time and he was already three quarters through the sixth year stuff. By ICW standards that was. By Hogwarts standards he was even in seventh year. Really and they told their students Hogwarts was the best institution for magical education.

Harry intended to learn for the ICW standards and take his tests when he was ready. Sirius taught him everything he knew and for the rest he hired tutors and some of the best lived in Japan. Contrary to England, the Japanese witches and wizards didn't live isolated from the muggles. They were integrated in their society. They still kept the Statute of Secrecy, but they lived normal lives. One reason why Japan was one of the most modern wizarding societies in the world. Magical children in Japan started a combined education in magic and muggle subjects at the age of five and continued until their N.E.W.T.s.

Magical education started at age five, when they attended special private elementary schools. These schools were commonly known as schools for highly talented children and children of the former attendants. Nobody knew of the true nature of these schools except a special department in the Japanese government.

Muggleborn children were introduced to the magical world with special classes. As they were never separated from their families, the rifts were very small. The parents got to visit the schools, normally they were provided with the choice between three of them, and could decide which school they liked best for their child. The Japanese mentality of working hard for your own future in the best possible environment helped a lot to bridge between the two worlds; and possible the fact that all Japanese Witches and Wizards knew how to work in the normal world. Mostly, if somebody found out about magic, they took it for another special ability like a great talent for music or art. Witches and wizards were like anybody else with a talent for magic.

The elementary schools were day schools only and due to the high population of Japan in the cities, there were at least three of them per city. Tokyo had five magical elementary schools. Harry had noticed from the material the goblins had provided that there were more witches and wizards living in Japan than in Great Britain and Ireland combined. Sirius had explained it with the wars against Voldemort and Grindelwald and the stupid inbreeding of purebloods. After all, if one parent was magical, the child normally was as well and with the lower barriers between magicals and muggles in Japan those marriages were more common.

Boarding schools were only for those children age eleven and older if their parents chose so. All over Japan there were ten magical day schools and five boarding schools. Each of the boarding schools could take about thousand students. Normally they fought over the best students to teach. Those choosing day schools were provided with school portkeys to get to school and back home if they didn't live in travelling distance to them. The most well-known day schools were in Kyoto, Tokyo and Sapporo. The boarding schools were a bit outside the major settlements. The one seen as the best was on top of Mount Fuji. The whole area was copied from the world so that it existed next to the normal world. The only way inside was through a portal which was located at the base of the mountain in a small area which was warded against muggles finding it. Very similar to platform 9 ¾ in London.

When they had graduated from the schools, they could go for combined universities, the normal ones that also taught muggle children but offered witches and wizards special classes, attend one of the pure magical institutes, or continue with their studies independently. The Mount Fuji Academy of Magic even had an own university part. It was a major factor for it being seen as the best school for magic in Japan. Here the muggle and magical governments worked together.

With their highly traditional society, Japanese people were more open for spiritual things and most accidental magic or strange occurrences were explained by that.

...

"It was nice to meet you, Mr Black. We must go now, so Ayumi can see the show at the shopping centre." Mrs Yoshida said.

"Of course. Bye, Mrs Yoshida, Ayumi." Harry said and entered the apartment.

* * *

><p>In the office of the secretary of the principal of Teitan high school Sirius Black, now named Simon Black, filled out the last part of Harry's application form. He would go with the name Harrison Black. Black was such a common name, nobody would suspect anything. He was glad that he was finished. He hated paperwork. He gave the man the signed forms.<p>

"Very well, Mr Black; this seems to be in order. Your nephew can start class the day after tomorrow. Tell him he is to meet his teacher at 8.00 in the morning in this office. He will be taken to his new class then. He will be in class 2B. Do you have any questions?" The man asked.

"I don't think so Mr Nokama. You have been very helpful. I'm sure Harry will enjoy his time at this school." Sirius answered.

Sirius and Mr Nokama shook hands and then Sirius left the office.

* * *

><p>When he walked along the corridors he thought about what had happened back in England and he felt sick. That Dumbledore would go this far just to get Harry's money and sacrifice an innocent boy for his schemes. He was just glad, that he had found out soon enough and prepared Harry for his plan to get him away after taking his O.W.L.s Officially Harry was now an adult in the magical world and nobody could order him where he had to live. The transfer of his money hadn't been an issue as Gringotts had branches all over the world. Harry and Sirius were well off for their lives.<p>

Now they had the chance to build a new life. Together. Sirius had to smile at this thought. Finally they could be the family they were always meant to be. He just wished Remus could be here with them, but he was too deep in Dumbledore's net to get out without the manipulator getting suspicious. He himself had faked his death with a disillusionment charm, a confundus charm, and an impressive act. Everybody believed they had seen him falling through the veil in the death chamber. Well, he had fallen, next to the veil and then hurried to get out of there. But Harry's cries had been heartbreaking. He was glad that Harry knew that everything was just an act to get away from Dumbledore.

With all of magical Britain thinking him dead, nobody would look for him. The best thing was that he had closed up Grimmauld Place for the Order and instructed Kreacher to do everything to make sure nobody would be able to enter the house. He was Lord Black and he had the power to grant entrance to his ancestral home or not. The old codger would probably believe that only Sirius' heir could open it again and that was conveniently Harry, who had mysteriously disappeared from Britain. He pondered. By now McGonagall should have gotten the emancipation papers from China and Harry's withdrawal. He would love to see the old manipulator fume at his destroyed plans. But then he was too glad to be free again to truly care.

* * *

><p>Sirius was right, Dumbledore was fuming; how dared the damn brat flee the country and get emancipated? All his carefully laid plans were destroyed. The link wasn't strong enough yet to be of any use. And besides the diary and the ring he hadn't managed to destroy or find any other horcruxes. And the damn ring had presented him with a death sentence for any normal wizard. But nobody ever said he was normal. With the powers of the Resurrection Stone and the Philosopher's Stone he could create a new body for himself, a stronger body. But his original plan had been that he pretended to die, let the brat find all the horcruxes and destroy them and then sacrifice himself. Then Albus would mysteriously return, kill Tom and be the hero once again.<p>

The Potter fortune would have been the icing on the cake. He would legally gain the Cloak of Invisibility, the last of the Deathly Hallows. The refusal of the Hallow to work properly for him had been a setback, but he had thought he found a way around it. Then he would be the Master of Death. But without the brat Tom couldn't be killed. Harry was a horcrux. He had to die and he had to be killed by Tom.

Minerva's other news were also disturbing. How had the brat managed to ace the O.W.L.s? He was average at best with the exception of Defence against the Dark Arts. But that was the subject he wanted the brat to excel. It was part of the plan. But he never even suspected that he could be this good. He would have prevented it to just squash the possibility for him to get his emancipation. You needed two O's in core subjects and three E's to get emancipated. His observations had Harry to be expected getting only one O, and that was in Defence. He knew that Minerva had told Harry she would make sure he would gain the necessary grades to become an auror, as the boy had stated as his career wish.

He didn't fear that part though. He knew Severus hadn't taught the boy well enough to gain the O to get into his N.E.W.T. course. He had already planned for it. He would have used Harry to get Horace Slughorn back to teach Potions while Severus took over in Defence to further demoralize Harry. The other core classes of Transfiguration and Charms saw Harry at an E at best, so no risk there. That had been the plan.

But now, with twelve O's straight in all the subjects offered at Hogwarts, it was no question that the requisites were met. And he couldn't find out where the hell the boy was. With his trinkets destroyed he lost his means of monitoring the brat.

The only one he had managed to salvage was the one telling him that the wards around Privet Drive had fallen. No surprise there. It was infuriating.

* * *

><p>Harry sat on his bed in their new apartment and read one of his new school books. He would turn sixteen tomorrow and Sirius had promised him to visit the Tropical Marine Land. He was quite excited. He had never been to an amusement park. He heard the door of the apartment open and closed his book, leaving a bookmark where he had stopped reading. He stood up from his bed and went to greet Sirius.<p>

"Hey, Sirius." He said smiling. "How did it go?"

"It went well. You are starting at Teitan High the day after tomorrow at 8.00. Go to the office of the principal's secretary, Mr Nokama, it's on the second floor, and your homeroom teacher will take you to your class. You are in class 2B."

"Thanks, Sirius. I really look forward to just be a normal student again. No insane MOBs to place me in danger every year, no corrupt Ministry which is out to slander my name, just being Harry for once."

"I'm sure you will do great, pup. You are special, you can't change this. With your intelligence you could do anything you want to do." Sirius chuckled.

"Well, that would be attention I would accept. Being seen for my own accomplishments, not some insane luck."

Both grinned at each other. They went to the kitchen and Harry showed Sirius the use of electronic devices, which muggles normally used.


	3. Start into a New Life

**Hello everybody. As I said last time, two weeks for this chapter to get done. Thanks for all the great reviews I got for the last chapters.**

**It's time for Harry and Shinichi to meet.**

**Happy reading.**

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><p><strong>Start into a new Life<strong>

Harry stood in his room and put on his school uniform. The suit was in a light blue, worn over a white button up shirt with a green tie. He thought it was way more comfortable than the Hogwarts school robes. Furthermore, the suit looked better. Harry had taken to working out physically since the summer vacation before fourth year when he was confined to Durskaban, he couldn't learn all the time after all, and so far he had gotten in good shape. Not only had Harry always hated being weaker than Dudley, the constant taunts from the other kids at school about his old and too big hand-me-downs and his height had made him pretty self-conscious about his looks.

He hadn't been able to change anything at Privet Drive without drawing attention towards him, the worst thing he could do there, but for Hogwarts things were different. The first chance he had had, meaning before his third year, Harry had bought himself proper clothes in Diagon Alley. And while he mostly kept his promise to Fudge to not wander into Muggle London, he had made one trip there, using his invisibility cloak to slip out of the Cauldron when a man left through the door to the muggle side of London.

Harry had gone to Harrods, used his best 'I'm a boy and totally lost at shopping' look to get a girl to help him put together a complete wardrobe for him. It was nothing special, but the clothes were fitting him properly, were fairly good quality and looked good on him. He had also got himself clothes to train in. he intended to make good use of the Chamber of Secrets for learning spells and general training.

Most of those clothes were stored in the secret compartment of his new trunk. After all, he was a boy with too much time in Diagon Alley and his old trunk was getting too small for all of his things. It was logical that he got himself a new one that offered more space. He had told his dormmates that the trunk had three compartments. One for his clothes, one for books and writing supplies and one for potion ingredients, his broom, and other equipment. It was the standard for most students to have that kind of trunk, which Neville and Seamus confirmed for Dean and Ron. Truthfully, he had disguised the four locks for the other compartments of the trunk.

Now Harry had his own potions lab in the fourth compartment, which was much more convenient than being forced to use Myrtle's bathroom and a bedroom with a small bathroom, he had used it regularly during his stays at Privet Drive, the bed was so much better than the old one the Dursley had grudgingly 'allowed' him to have, in the fifth compartment.

The sixth compartment was a storage room for potion ingredients he didn't want anybody to know about, together with some magical objects he found useful and lastly he had a vast library in the last compartment. All of his copied books from the library were in there. While he didn't have the books when he purchased the trunk, he had already found the copy charm in his family grimoire. Nobody could say that Harry was somebody to let the opportunity to get the books in the Hogwarts Library for himself go to waste.

Nobody at Hogwarts had suspected anything as the bulky robes hid his body really well. And he mostly went to bed after the other boys in his dorm had already lain down, so Ron never really suspected anything being strange. Building muscle took time and Harry just wasn't the type to have bulky muscles. He was the classic lean and speedy type; a reason why he was better at playing seeker than chaser. They would have to see him without clothes to really notice. So the only ones who could have seen anything were his Quidditch teammates and they didn't think anything about it.

Adding to his now properly visible body built were his new contacts, which he had gotten at the magical shopping mile in Tokyo; permanent ones that changed with his eyes if his prescription changed. His scar was concealed with a bit muggle make up and nobody would recognize him as Harry Potter; if they ever got to looking for him in muggle Japan that was.

It also helped that for a 'small' fee the goblins had arranged for Harry to be medically treated by a Japanese Master Healer as soon as he reached Tokyo. His malnourishment was dealt with and he had gained a few inches in height. Now he didn't look two years younger than he was anymore.

Sirius had told him, that he would start working for Gringotts Japan as a curse-breaker in three days and that he would like to sleep in for the rest of his free days. Harry had agreed. He was more than capable to get ready on his own. When he left the apartment, he met little Ayumi who also was on her way to school. He greeted her smiling and they talked a bit in the elevator.

Ayumi went to Teitan elementary school and had two good friends. Genta Kojima, an overweight boy who loved eel on rice and had very short black hair, and Mitsuhiko Tsuburaiya, a lanky boy with short brown hair, who was very interested in science. Harry really needed to get used to Japanese names especially in written form. From what Ayumi told him, the three were little adventurers. Harry just hoped they didn't get into more trouble than they could manage. He met the two boys at the door of the building and said goodbye to Ayumi as they had to go in different directions. He heard Ayumi telling the boys that he was her new neighbour.

* * *

><p>Harry followed the directions Sirius had given him the evening before. He fondly remembered the visit at the Marine Land. They had had so much fun there. He was really glad, that he could finally live with his godfather, even if he now went as his uncle. He was a better uncle figure than Vernon 'the walrus' Dursley that was for sure. Harry saw some other students his age or around his age in the same school uniform as his, the closer he came to Teitan High. When he finally reached the school, he was surprised. There were lots of reporters. Why were they here? Did some kind of celebrity attend school? Just what he needed, he thought sarcastically.<p>

It was just a quarter to eight and he decided to discreetly observe what this was all about. He didn't have to wait long. When a boy his age with short slightly untamed brown hair and a girl with long straight brown hair arrived, the reporters got really excited.

"Mr Kudo, please a comment from your last case." One reporter said.

"Please, Mr Kudo, how did you figure out who the culprit was?" Another asked.

"So he is a detective. Impressive at his age. Judging their behaviour, he must be really good." Harry quietly said.

He decided to go to the office he was supposed to meet his teacher at. He found the office without a problem after looking on a map of the building near the entrance. He knocked at the door and was asked to come in.

"Good morning, my name is Harrison Black. My uncle has enrolled me two days ago and I was told I should come here today at 8.00." Harry explained.

"Ah yes, Mr Black. Welcome to Teitan High. I hope your uncle also gave you the pamphlet with the school rules and your timetable." The secretary said.

"Yes he did. I already have gotten all the books I will need."

"Very good. I have read your file and I was impressed. It isn't often that a foreign student is this proficient at Japanese. But your test results showed that you would be able to follow the class without problem. Your teacher will show you to your locker where you can place your books during the day and also the locker for your street shoes. As it was stated in the pamphlet, each student has those. Here are the keys for your locker and the number of your shoe locker. They don't have keys but the area is under video surveillance. So you don't have to fear for your shoes."

"Thanks, that's good to know. Just one question out of curiosity. I have seen the many reporters in front of the school, who tried to get an interview with the detective Kudo. Is that a regular occurrence?" Harry asked politely.

"Oh, you have already heard of Shinichi Kudo?" The secretary asked.

"No, I didn't, but it was pretty obvious, that he is a detective from what I overheard about a case and a culprit and how he found out about it. Is he really that famous?"

"Yes, he is. He is called the saviour of the Japanese police. He is really good and one of the most famous high school detectives in Japan. I think the only ones who are as famous in their regions are Heiji Hattori in Osaka and Saguru Hakuba here in Tokyo. But Hakuba is more a specialist for the Kaito Kid heists. Kudo seems to be more included in murder cases. Hattori I don't really know."

Harry got the impression that Mr Nokama was a fan of detectives, especially those that still went to school.

"That's really impressive. How old is Kudo?" Harry asked.

"He is sixteen like you. In fact you will be in the same class." The secretary answered.

Harry grinned. That would be interesting. He liked to compete with an intelligent classmate. Hopefully this Shinichi Kudo was not a snob who thought himself better than others because of his fame.

It knocked at the door. The secretary called to come in. A slim woman with shoulder length black, curly hair and round glasses came in.

"Good morning, Mr Nokama. I'm here to get the new student for the 2B." She said.

"Good morning, Miss Gykoro. This is your new student, Harrison Black. He transferred to us from a private school in Scotland and has moved to Japan with his uncle Simon Black due to his uncle's job. Please show him his locker and introduce him to your class." Mr Nokama explained.

"Of course I will. Mr Black, please follow me. I will take you to the locker-room first so you can place your books for the afternoon lessons there and then I will take you to your new class."

"Thank you, Miss Gykoro." Harry answered smiling.

* * *

><p>Fifteen minutes later Harry stood at the door of his new classroom. He just hoped he would be able to make friends here. True friends who would have his back, unlike some traitors he knew. He took a deep breath to relax and then he and Miss Gykoro entered the room.<p>

"Good morning, everyone. Today we have a new student with us. He transferred here from a private boarding school in Scotland due to his uncle's job. Please introduce yourself." She told Harry.

"Good morning everyone. My name is Harrison Black, but I prefer to be called Harry. I am sixteen years old and this is my first time in Japan, so if I unknowingly do anything inappropriately, please tell me, so I can avoid it in the future. I like sports and mystery books and hope we will become good friends."

"Very good, Mr Black. Please sit down at the free seat next to Mr Nakamura." Miss Gykoro said and the boy in question raised his hand.

Harry went to the seat and sat down. He took out his books for the subject and the class began. It was Maths and Harry had no problem following Miss Gykoro. When the bell rang after one hour and a half, he was surrounded by his new classmates, who wanted to get to know him better. He found out through observation, that one girl, Sonoko Suzuki, was a gossip and the best friend of the girl that had accompanied Shinichi Kudo this morning, Ran Mori. Sonoko was a pretty girl who wore her dark blond hair to the chin.

The boys were asking about his favourite sport. As he could hardly tell them that he played Quidditch, he said football. He liked to play at elementary school and was rather decent at it. He just didn't have the time to play that often. The topics changed a lot and he made some nice acquaintances. When it was time to go to lunch, somehow he ended up followed by Sonoko. He didn't really know why, but he tried to be polite. He got his lunch, he chose chicken steak with rice and salad, and took a seat at the same table as Sonoko, Ran, and Shinichi. It seemed Shinichi tried to encourage Ran to find out the solution to some riddle.

"Come on, Ran, it's an easy riddle. You have all the clues. You just have to combine them in the right way." Shinichi said smirking.

"I am not a mystery freak like you, Shinichi. I just want to eat in peace." Ran said annoyed.

"How about you, Sonoko?" Shinichi asked challenging.

"No thank you. From what Ran tells me, I will just embarrass myself. Why don't you ask Harry here? He isn't already used to your spleen." Sonoko said.

"Why not…" Harry said. "I like a challenge."

"Well, ok, Harry. This is the case. A man was found dead in his living room. The weapon was a gun. The fingerprints of the victim are on the gun and it is clear that it was suicide. The only traces of anything unusual in the room are some little spots on the floor where sawdust is found. Now try to deduct what could the motive for the suicide be and who could be responsible for the sawdust." Shinichi said grinning.

"You are unbelievable, Shinichi, nobody could find out what had happened with so little information." Sonoko ranted.

Harry was deep in thought.

"Sawdust, results of cutting wood, so somebody had tempered with the furniture and was forced to leave the room before he had the opportunity to erase any traces of trespassing. Probably the owner of the house or flat or wherever this living room was, came back sooner than expected. The thing that was tempered with had a highly emotional result on the victim. Otherwise the suicide doesn't make sense. So tempering with the furniture results in an emotional trauma that leads to suicide.

"Only a severe loss would result in suicide. So what would be lost? A unique position, influence, fame, money, existence. Sawdust means something was cut out. So the furniture seemed smaller than before. Why would smaller furniture be traumatic? Who would be deeply affected?"

Shinichi, Ran, and Sonoko were stunned. The girls couldn't believe their eyes and ears. How could somebody get so many conclusions with so little information? Shinichi was grinning like mad. It seemed that he had finally found somebody who was able to deduct nearly as well as himself. Perhaps he could become friends with Harry. He seemed different than the others in his class.

"I think I got it." Harry finally said.

"The victim is famous. Precisely he is the smallest man on earth. The sawdust on the floor indicates, that somebody tempered with the furniture in the room to make him believe, that he has grown. This indicates the second smallest man to be the one who tempered with the furniture. Or somebody on his command. The emotional shock of the loss of his existence, which he made with his status as the smallest man on earth, drives him into suicide. Am I right, Shinichi?" Harry said grinning, pretty sure, that he was right.

"Congratulations, Harry, you are the first one to figure this out and in a really good time. I'm really impressed." Shinichi answered.

"Thanks, Shinichi. I really like riddles. This one was a real challenge; do you have more of them?" He asked.

Sonoko groaned. This just couldn't be true. Shinichi Kudo, generally acknowledged mystery freak had found a similar minded companion. And why did it have to be the cute new student? She knew from Ran's experience with Shinichi that boys like that just didn't think about beautiful girls like normal boys. How could she get a good looking boyfriend if the boy was only thinking about cases and conclusions? This was just not fair.

* * *

><p>Hermione Granger was seething. This was just not fair. She had worked without a break to be the top of her year in all the classes she took. And now she didn't get the top spot in the O.W.L.s. She had been top of the year during all her years at Hogwarts. She had tried to cope with the stress of taking all the subjects Hogwarts offered in her third year, but had had to realize that it was too much for her to do. The time-turner hadn't helped that much, as the rules only allowed her to use it to get to her classes, not to double her time for homework. So she had dropped Divination, which was useless anyway, and Muggle Studies to concentrate on the more important classes like Ancient Runes and Arithmancy.<p>

But now she saw on the parchment with her results that had come from the Ministry, that she had ended being second in her year. The information she got didn't tell her who the best student was though. It only had her grades and her overall standing in her year on it. She couldn't wrap her mind around it. Who could have possible bested her? In single classes, she could accept it. Everybody knew that Harry was the best in Defence and that Neville had a green thumb. She had gotten an E in Defence and knew it had been because of the practical part. She didn't have that much raw power that was necessary for Defence sometimes.

And after having exhausting exams in the days prior, her spells hadn't been as strong as they would have been if she didn't have that many other exams. The stress over trying to be the best at everything might have played a role as well. She had to accept it and her O's in all the other subjects made more than up for the one E. But she just didn't know who could have beaten her. She hated losing and not having all the information. She went over all her year mates and came up empty. None of the Ravenclaws had ever managed to be better than her, the Hufflepuffs neither. Forget about Slytherin. Most of them were too stupid. The only three that had something resembling skill were Malfoy, Zabini and Greengrass. But she knew she was better than them.

And in Gryffindor she also knew nobody. Lavender and Parvati were too busy with fashion and cosmetics, Dean, Seamus and Neville were just average, Ron was lazy as hell and Harry, while powerful, was holding back to not upset his friends. And he never invested that much work in the theoretical parts. While she thought he could have done well in the practical, it wouldn't be enough to best her, except in Defence all according to the headmaster's master plan.

She wanted to scream. She had analysed the information she had and the results were just not adding up.

* * *

><p>Ron sat at the Burrow and frowned at the tirade his mother gave him for his O.W.L. results. He had gotten more O.W.L.s than Fred and George combined, so why was she ranting about them so much? He should have done better, put more effort in his studies and not just scrapped some A's in most subjects.<p>

So what if he failed History and got a D? It was not as if anybody but Hermione could stay awake while the ghost droned on and on. It was a minor miracle in his opinion to pass Potions with the bastard Snape as his teacher. The way he had it in for Gryffindors made learning nearly impossible. His A was a major achievement in his eyes. The E in Care was more than okay. At least she didn't criticize it, but of course it was the wrong subject to be good at. An A in Transfiguration and Charms made her rant on and on. He knew that he passed Charms well enough in the practical but his theory wasn't that good. Why did they have to split the results in theory and practical anyway? It only made his mother rant about his laziness.

Defence was an E and he hated to admit it was due to Potter teaching the DA last year, that he had gotten that mark. Potter would just gloat about his success. As if the whole idea hadn't been Hermione's to begin with. He failed in Divination, a P had been expected and Herbology was an A. Astronomy was an A, but with the interruption of the exams that was to be expected. Considering that Fred and George got three O.W.L.s each his results were really good.

And why would it matter? He would do his job for the headmaster and in the end he would get Potter's fortune. Why should he care that he couldn't take that many subjects now, because the requirements for them were higher than his results? It only meant more free time for him. He would go on with Defence, Herbology, Charms, Astronomy and Care. While he couldn't become an auror with those subjects, the stress and danger of the job would be a problem anyway. No, he would become Keeper for the Canons and live famous for the years he could play and then just live from the money he got from Potter and from his professional career. Like any proper pureblood should.

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><p>Neville grinned proudly at his results. He had managed to get two O's in Herbology and Defence. He would send Harry a thank you note for this. His friend had really helped him last year by boosting his confidence and showing him how to properly do the defensive spells. His grandmother had told him how proud she was for his actions at the Department of Mysteries and his O.W.L. results. With his new wand, that she had gotten him first thing after he departed the Hogwarts Express, he felt better than with his father's ever before. He felt like he could do magic more easily now.<p>

He had managed an E in Charms, an A in Transfiguration, which was a slight disappointment for his Gran, but the positive results in Defence got her over it easily. Astronomy was an E, he liked watching stars, History an A, Divination an A, he didn't know how he had managed that one, he never saw anything and just interpreted the lines in the hand of his examiner from what he read in the book, Care was an E, Potions to his utter delight an E, take that Snape, and Ancient Runes, which his Gran had taught him from the time he was nine, an E as well. He was ranked fifteenth out of fifty and was really happy about it.

When he was getting ready to go into his greenhouse, a grey owl descended towards the window of his room. He didn't recognize the owl and was curious who could have written to him. The owl landed on the window sill and let Neville take the letter from her leg. Then she took off, not waiting for any treat or even taking a sip of water. Perhaps she had to be elsewhere soon. Neville used a basic detection spell Harry had taught him in fourth year on the letter to see if there were any spells on it. If the trip to the Ministry had taught him one thing, it was CONSTANT VIGILANCE. Moody had a point there.

The letter was clean and Neville opened it. He was surprised to see it was from Harry. Why did he send a letter and didn't use Hedwig? Neville started reading and understood.

_Hi Neville,_

_I hope this letter finds you well and happy about your O.W.L. results. As you are one of two true friends I had at Hogwarts, the other being Luna, I wanted to tell you personally that I won't return to Hogwarts next year._

Neville stopped reading, shocked what Harry had written. He wouldn't return? He only had two true friends? He needed to know more.

_I am sure you are wondering why I would do something as drastic as that and why I only count two people at Hogwarts true friends. After all, I was best friends with Ron and Hermione since our first year._

Yeah, that were the questions he had, Neville mentally agreed.

_The reason for my withdrawal from Hogwarts is Professor Dumbledore. He has planned to use me as a sacrifice in the war against Voldemort. I knew he was up to no good after my first year, when I had more time to ponder the obstacles protecting the Philosopher's Stone. It was all a test for me, after all, what kind of protections for an invaluable magical artefact could be overcome by three first years? No, they were created with us in mind. The Cerberus was Hagrid's and he let slip how to get past it._

_The Devil's Snare would have been up your road, but Hermione also is good at Herbology, so even if I didn't include you, the obstacle would have been overcome. Next a room with flying keys. I am the youngest seeker in a century, that one was tailored to my strengths. Then the giant chess set; Ron's one real strength. The troll was knocked out, but we had already defeated one before that, so we wouldn't be frozen if it had been awake. And Wingardium Leviosa is eay to cast on a club if you know it works. Then the Potions Riddle was just logic, something any muggleborn or muggle-raised child could have done. Again tailored for Hermione. The last protection was the Mirror of Erised, which I coincidentally found during the Christmas holidays and was told how it worked by Dumbledore._

Neville could understand Harry's doubts. There were a lot stronger ways to protect something as valuable as a Philosopher' Stone. Having it pointed oout like this was making him sceptical of the headmaster's intentions as well.

_When I was visiting Ron and Hermione in the hospital wing after we were back from the Ministry for some days, I overheard them and Dumbledore talking. I found out that the two people that I thought were my best friends were conspiring with Dumbledore, planning my death at the hands of Voldemort. Ron demanded a pay rise for pretending to be my friend. Hermione called me too stupid to find out anything about their deceit because I always let her do all the research and was only average in my classes._

_They intentionally held me back to prevent me from learning too much about magic and my position in society. They spoke about inheriting the Potter fortune after my death through a fake will that Dumbledore set up. Well, they made one critical mistake; I am smarter than I let on. I don't know if anybody will come to you and ask you if you know my whereabouts; that's right, I am out of England and don't intend to come back for some time; just tell them you don't know. I have already filed my emancipation through the Chinese Ministry of Magic, of course I am not in China, that would be too easy for those hunting me, but I won't tell you either so they can't get it out of you against your will. Snape and Dumbledore know Legilimency, nearly the same as reading minds, and wouldn't hesitate to mind rape you._

Neville frowned. Legilimency was illegal to use against minors.

_Please tell everybody the true story why I left and not let the traitors bend it to their liking. This is no misunderstanding. It would be great if you continued the DA without the traitors because the war will become worse soon and with the DADA teachers we usually get, Remus Lupin being the exception, they won't be prepared in case they get into dangerous situations. Constant practice ensures you remember the spells you will need. I trust you to do your best and prepare them. _

_By the way, don't let yourself be caught in Dumbledore's schemes. He told me there was a prophecy the hag Trelawney made before we were born. I am not sure the one he showed me is the real one, but there was one and that was what Voldemort tried to get from the Department of Mysteries. The one I heard is this:_

_**The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches … born to those who have thrice defied him … born as the seventh month dies … and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal … but he will have powers the Dark Lord knows not … and either must die by the hand of the other … as neither can life while the other survives … the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies.**_

_That gibberish could have meant either of us. With me gone, he could try to use you. Be on guard. I think there is more to it, or another prophecy. He also said I had to die so Voldemort could die in the hospital wing, when he didn't know I was there. He called me a horcrux. I will do research what that is, I have never heard the word anywhere._

Neville frowned. He hadn't heard of the word either.

_I will try to keep in contact. If you want to send me a letter, give it to the goblins at Gringotts, they will forward it to me. Take care my friend._

_Harry_

This was a big change. He wouldn't have believed that Ron and Hermione would betray Harry like that and only be after his fortune. He would contact the other members of the DA and inform them about the traitors. They wouldn't have a nice time at Hogwarts anymore. Harry had made many friends last year and was well-liked by many others after they realized he had stood strong against the slander of the Ministry. He had been the outspoken voice of truth and had taken the punishment for it. But he never wavered and stood to his story. Only to be proven right in the end.

Neville would take over to prepare his friends at Hogwarts. His O.W.L.s had proven he was talented at Defence and he knew he had power. He needed to get the old auror books of his parents. He was sure his Gran would help him. It was after all something his father would have done too.

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><p><strong>That's it for this chapter. Until next time.<strong>


	4. Developments after Six Months

**Hi, I am back with the next chapter. Thanks for all the nice reviews you left. **

**As usual, I don't own Harry Potter or Detective Conan.**

**Happy Reading.**

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><p><strong>Developments From Six Months<strong>

It had been six months now and Harry and Shinichi had become best friends. They were equally smart and stunned the police with astonishing deductions whenever they got into a new case, which happened more often, than Harry liked. He had also tried to get Shinichi to be a bit more careful in persecuting criminals. The boy had a worse problem to ignore injustice than he did. And he wanted to shine. Wanted to be in the spotlight. Well, Harry could live with it, as long as Shinichi was careful and didn't jump into a case without precautions. Harry also enjoyed being able to show his true personality. He was ambitious and wanted to be the best. Here in Japan he could be. Sirius was fascinated by the changes Harry had gone through in the six months since they had arrived here. It suited his godson much better than the habit of holding back all the time.

Shinichi had introduced Harry to Professor Agasa, a big-bellied, man with a big bulb nose, who suffered from loss of his white hair on top of his head, he invented things that mostly blew up in his face if you believed Shinichi, who was an old friend of Shinichi's family, which was living in L.A. Harry wondered why they thought that it would be alright to leave their son behind, even if Shinichi was normally responsible enough to get by well. Except when he was in a case, but Harry couldn't really blame him. It was exciting and interesting to find all the clues and find the culprit. They were already famous with the police. Shinichi really liked his moniker 'The Holmes of the New Millennia'. Harry went by 'The Hawk'. He still had not figured out how the press got this moniker for him.

They said because he spotted tiny details that helped solving the case. Really. But it was difficult to argue with the press. Today he was accompanying Shinichi to buy some groceries. Strangely Shinichi was deep in thought.

"What's on your mind, Shinichi?" Harry asked.

"You know that Ran has this Karate championship coming up?" Shinichi said.

"Of course. She is talking about it nearly every lunch break and training like crazy to win it." Harry answered.

"Well, the thing is, I would like to do something for her if she wins. You know I like her. Like really like her. But I don't know what to do if she wins."

"Hm, difficult. I assume you want to take her on a date but not really spill the beans to her."

"You could say that." Shinichi admitted. "The thing is, I don't know her feelings. And I don't want to be embarrassed if she says no. She has too much blackmail material for that." He added mumbling.

Harry grinned. This was so typical for Shinichi. The guy was able to figure out the most complicated crimes but was unable to tell, that the girl he liked, probably loved, returned his feelings, even if the rest of the class had figured out that much easily. Harry decided to do this methodically.

"Okay, what kind of activities does Ran like?"

"Well, she hates ghosts. That much I do know. She likes entertainment. And she likes good food. But with her father being that bad of a detective she rarely gets to eat at restaurants."

"What do you think about inviting her to Tropical Land or Tropical Marine Land? There you can use the different rides, have fun and I know that they both have at least one really nice restaurant."

"You know, Harry, that's not a bad idea. I think I will do that. I will tell her, that if she wins the championship, that I will invite her to Tropical Land. Their restaurant is better than the one in Marine Land in my opinion." Shinichi agreed.

"And like the gentleman you are, you will pay for everything. With all the money your dad makes it won't be a problem for you. And when everything is perfectly romantic you confess your feelings for her, she confesses her feelings for you and you kiss her under the stars." Harry concluded, getting a nice reaction from Shinichi.

"WHAT? Harry, I can't do this. You are crazy!" Shinichi protested blushing madly.

"Oh am I? I know for sure, that you both like each other and a date is only over if you get a kiss from the girl. So don't chicken out. The whole class has seen what you are seemingly unable to realize. Ran likes you and wants to be your girlfriend."

"That's crazy, Harry. I can't just kiss her." Shinichi said while his face was taking a really interesting shade of red now.

"Why not?" Harry asked.

"I, I just can't. Damn you should have realized by now that Japanese mentality is different from European or American." Shinichi defended.

"You are just making up excuses and you know it." Harry said grinning.

"Who is making up excuses?" A female voice asked.

Shinichi and Harry turned and looked at Sonoko and Ran. While Harry liked teasing Shinichi, he would never embarrass him in front of Ran on purpose. That was not something best friends did. So he really needed a good excuse and fast.

"Shinichi here is. We have gotten this damn invitation for this boring meeting with one of the clients in the last case we solved. I think we have to go just to show our faces, he thinks we could use our time better and now we are arguing what is better and he is making up more excuses not to go because he wants to read that new mystery novel." Harry said.

Shinichi was really glad that Harry was that good at making up believable excuses on the fly.

"Hey, that novel is fantastic. You will agree with me when you have read it. I just started the first two chapters but it is …" Shinichi said before being interrupted by Sonoko.

"Really, do you have nothing else in that mind of yours? You could for example tell Ran that she has to slow down a bit in her training and take a day off. Really this championship is driving her crazy." Sonoko ranted.

Harry gave Shinichi a meaningful look. Shinichi gulped and nodded.

"Well, let's see. I know, Ran, if you win the tournament, I will take you out to Tropical Land and pay for everything, what do you say?" Shinichi said smiling.

"Really?" Ran said enthusiastically.

"Argh, I said making her see sense, not encouraging her to train even more just to go there with you." Sonoko ranted.

Shinichi ignored her.

"Yes, promise. But you have to take one day a week off to regenerate. Otherwise Sonoko is going to explode and we can't let that happen. Think alone the headlines that would cause 'Suzuki Heiress explodes because of Karate Freak'." Shinichi said grinning.

Sonoko tried to hit him, but Shinichi ducked.

"No chance, Sonoko. I am too fast for you." Shinichi said before running away, Sonoko hot on his heels.

"Get back here, Shinichi!" Sonoko shouted.

Harry and Ran shook their heads at this display.

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><p>Dumbledore was seething by now. Six damn months and no clue had come up where the damn brat could have vanished to. All investigations in China turned out to be dead ends. Didn't help at all that none of his order members was able to speak Chinese. He was the only one and too busy to travel around looking for the brat. If he left Great Britain Voldemort would run amok. And the Chinese Ministry had informed him in non-misunderstanding ways that they weren't obliged to help him find a teenager who was emancipated and could do whatever he wanted to do. He was not his guardian. He should leave the boy alone.<p>

How did they dare to treat him, Albus Dumbledore, leader of the light like that? But his problem was he couldn't spare any resources on the hunt for the brat when Tom was wracking havoc in Britain and slowly but surely taking over control. How did he lose control like this? Where did he fail to notice what was going on? He had placed all his pawns in the right places. The boy had had an unhappy childhood like planned and was eager to learn magic and seeing him as a kind grandfather figure. Planting Weasley and Granger as spies by his side kept him under control without him being seen interfering with Harry's life in a direct way.

While Granger hadn't been his original pawn, she had been easily convinced after he had showed her the realities of the wizarding world on Britain. It was so easy to get the twelve year old girl under his control. He had called her to his office just after the Christmas break in her first year. As a muggleborn witch she needed a highly placed patron to ever achieve any standing in their society. With her brains she could be at the top and the girl was ambitious. Add a certain amount of knowledge she could gain and he had his second spy close to Harry Potter. It was perfect. Now he had Harry surrounded by two characteristically totally different people.

Ron Weasley, the lazy, jealous underachiever and Hermione Granger the ambitious but also jealous overachiever. Hermione's temper and bossiness also should have kept Harry in a mind-set to not try to find out too much about anything. After all, he had to balance the personalities of his two best friends. So he was kept an average student. He had considered helping the issue along with a mind block or a power block, but the reports from his two spies had him refrain from doing so as Harry was seemingly perfectly content to stay average.

Everything seemed to work perfectly. The boy was the picture perfect Gryffindor and stumbled through his little training courses over the years just like he had planned. There were never any signs that the boy was able to concoct a plan to escape his control. Or were they? The only thing he could think of was that his sorting had taken quite long. Had the hat considered putting the brat into Slytherin? No, impossible. But perhaps Ravenclaw? With his O.W.L. results it was probable. It was absolutely a possibility that he had argued against the Ravens to be with his new friend from the train and as he knew Weasley had painted Gryffindor in the best light.

When he had called a meeting of those included in the plan, their reactions had been interesting.

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><p><strong><em>Flashback<em>**

Dumbledore sat in his chair behind his desk, Molly, Arthur, Ron and Ginny Weasley, and Hermione Granger sitting on the other side. The O.W.L. results had arrived just one and a half weeks earlier and by now Minerva had also found Harry Potter's withdrawal from Hogwarts. It was a catastrophe for his plans. He needed to know how his spies could have overlooked any signs that Harry was getting independent.

"I am sure you know why I have called you here?" He asked.

"To be honest, no, Professor." Hermione answered.

Dumbledore pondered the answer. Okay, she had been in the muggle world with her parents and hadn't known about the hunt for Harry yet. The Weasleys meanwhile were nodding.

"Miss Granger, I have called you all here to discuss what we can do concerning our escapee. Harry has vanished, never arrived at his relatives' house and then disappeared without a trace. We only found out one and a half weeks ago the day when the O.W.L. results were published."

"Where is the connection between the O.W.L. results and Harry disappearing, Professor?" She asked not getting the point.

"Perhaps this will help you understand." He took out the list with the overall standing of all students in their year and handed it over to her.

"WHAT?" She screeched, causing all the Weasleys to look at her. "That is absolutely impossible! He couldn't have beat me!" She protested.

Ron took the list from her hands and looked at it.

"No way, Harry is top student of our year? I was sure it had been you, Hermione." Ron said baffled.

"Yes, that is an important point which I wanted to have cleared up for me. You see, I was under the impression that Harry wouldn't have a chance to get the grades he needed to be emancipated. You know, two O's in core classes and three others with E's. He had twelve O's. Your reports stated he was only average, which was backed by the reports I had from the staff. While I expected a better result for the O.W.L.s after Minerva's report about his career advise, none of this should have been possible. The only class I expected him to excel in was Defence Against the Dark Arts. I need to know if there were ever any signs of him learning more than he should have.

"He had to find information about emancipation in the wizarding world to even consider the possibility. I have taken those books from the normal library and placed them in the restricted section in the summer after your first year. I didn't think about it in your first year and didn't expect Harry to even think about it then. But were there ever periods of time where he was unobserved that would have enabled him to find that out?" Dumbledore asked.

"Not after I joined Harry and Ron." Hermione answered quickly. "While we spent a lot of time in the library looking up Flamel, Harry never read books relating to other topics than his homework or our research."

"In the months before Halloween Harry was mostly in my company. He only was on his own perhaps three times for at most an hour or so. I couldn't just follow him everywhere then when I was already busy with other things, it would have looked strange to him. I sometimes played a game of chess, gobstones or exploding snap with Neville, Dean or Seamus. But Madam Pince would have noticed and told you if he had asked her for those books. And during that time magic was completely new for him, I don't think he would have gone to the section of law books on his own e even if he went to the library during those times."

"Okay, that is plausible. The chances he did so in the very beginning are small. Did Harry ever show signs of tiredness on some days? He could have read during the nights." Dumbledore asked.

"No, he never did. While he liked to sleep in on Saturdays that was the same with Neville and Seamus. And under the week he never stood out for it. The only chance he would have had to sleep were Binns' lessons and honestly, everybody except Hermione sleeps in them." Ron answered.

Dumbledore accepted the explanation, but was wondering if Harry didn't use the Friday nights to learn more. Now he regretted giving him back the Invisibility Cloak, but it had been necessary. The cloak only worked for his true owner and to push Harry to risk more and sneak out for the adventures he wanted him to have, he had needed it. Without it Harry would never have risked so much and wouldn't have gone through the training courses Dumbledore set up. But with the way he presented himself, he hadn't suspected that he could use it for more.

"What I would like to know, is there a chance that we can prevent him handing in his emancipation papers?" Hermione asked.

"No, he already did that, in China of all places." Arthur informed her.

He had been one of the Order members that had been sent out to look for Harry.

"Yes, and the papers were filed at the Ministry before they reached us here at Hogwarts. With the chaos there following the return of Voldemort, the twenty-four hours during which somebody could protest the emancipation becoming permanent passed unnoticed. There is no way Harry's emancipation could be undone except he would prove to not be suited to stand on his own legs. And face it, his O.W.L. results are exceptional and he is financially too well off to have any ministry but ours, with Cornelius at the top post that is, who is trying to cling to his office, doubting his readiness. And even Cornelius would hesitate to openly go against the so called 'Chosen One'." Dumbledore grumbled.

"Did you manage to find a trace where Harry could be?" Ron asked, mad that Harry had slipped away from the net.

His whole plans for financial unconcern depended on him pretending to be Harry's friend and meanwhile spy for Dumbledore. If Harry stayed away it was doubtful he would get as much money as before. And he didn't save much of the money he got over the years.

"No, the Chinese Ministry is extremely secretive and only told us that we should leave the boy alone, he was perfectly within his rights to get emancipated. He is an orphan, living with horrible muggles, so they fully support his decision. By now we are sure he only briefly stopped in China to submit his emancipation papers and get them confirmed, then he went somewhere else. We are checking the magical schools in America, Canada, Australia and the other countries where they have schools that have English as the main language." Dumbledore said.

"That makes sense. What I would like to know is, how did he manage to pass the O.W.L.s for Runes, Arithmancy and Muggle Studies? I know he never went to one of the classes, I would have noticed him. They also were at the same time as Divination and Care of Magical Creatures. He never read one of the books for the classes either. And from third year on we kept an even closer look at him. I practically never left his side in fourth year and I would have noticed if he had looked up anything like that for the Tournament." Hermione stated miffed.

"Did you ever borrow him your time-turner, Miss Granger?" Dumbledore wanted to know.

"No, I always kept it on my person, even when I was sleeping. Harry only learned of it at the end of the year when we did that rescue mission for Sirius. And afterwards I handed it back to Professor McGonagall. He couldn't have used it for himself." She answered.

"That really is curious." Molly admitted.

She really didn't like the fact that Harry had escaped. The next year would have been the time for Ginny to seduce Harry, if necessary with the help of love potions. Then they would have been one step closer to getting the Potter fortune; after Sirius' death even the Black fortune. But no, the boy had to flee the country. If she got him into her hands.

Dumbledore thought about it. Nothing indicated a way how Harry could have managed to ace his O.W.L.s and do three additional subjects without problem. While there were spells that could copy magical objects like time-turners, they weren't in the normal part of the library. And anybody looking in the restricted section would have been noticed, invisibility cloak or not. And they wouldn't have worked for more than a month. Without the original to copy repeatedly he couldn't have managed it.

"Don't the goblins know where he is?" Ginny asked.

"They do, but they refuse to tell me anything; Harry is one of their wealthiest customers after all. If he took away his business from them, they would lose too much money. And the goblins always refused to let me access Harry's account in the past, even if I had his key." Dumbledore answered.

"There are security precautions for the trust vaults at Gringotts. The owner of the vault can only withdraw a set amount of money in one go. I think it is about 200 galleons or so a month with an additional amount at the start of the school year to buy books, robes and so on, and keep some pocket money for the time at school. It is possible to agree on other amounts, but it has to be a parent or guardian of the child that does so." Arthur explained it.

"Correct. While I tried to be named Harry's guardian by the Wizengamot, it didn't work. I couldn't name a good enough reason when I didn't raise him myself. For me to become guardian of Harry, I would have had to unseal the Potter will, which would have meant that everybody would have known that Harry was never, under no circumstances, to be given to Petunia Dursley. I don't know what else might have been in there, but that one I knew about. The guardianship could be passed to Petunia because she was Lily's sister. If she was out, he would have gone to Sirius or Alice Longbottom."

"But both were out because of the things that happened immediately after the murder of James and Lily. Sirius went after Peter and could be thrown into Azkaban thanks to Barty Crouch and Alice and Frank were attacked by the Lestranges before they could file for guardianship. Any others that would have been named in the will were not known to others." Molly understood.

"Yes, and it wouldn't have been that hard to convince Frank and Alice that Harry had to stay with Petunia for security reasons. They were aurors and would have understood the importance of keeping Harry safe. They knew about the prophecy after all, at least the part that their son could also have been involved." Dumbledore explained.

He wouldn't tell anybody that he had leaked the location of the Longbottoms to the Death Eaters beforehand, it had been important to find the prophesied child after all.

"Do we have any possibilities to track Harry down with your instruments, Professor?" Hermione asked.

"No, after Harry had destroyed them, I really thought it would be easy to repair them and get them back to working, they lost the core ingredient, the blood I took from Harry when he was an infant. Somehow all stocks of blood, hair or other body parts of Harry disappeared from Hogwarts, Privet Drive and Grimmauld Place. He must have ordered a house elf or so to clean up thoroughly. Or found another way. I need a part of Harry to get them working again. I don't know how he could have known it though. The instruments are rare and are not mentioned in any books in the Hogwarts library."

"As you mentioned house elves, did you ask Dobby to help with the issue? He always knew how to find Harry." Hermione suggested.

"I tried, but he must have realized that it would not be to Harry's advantage and left Hogwarts. I don't know where he is now." Dumbledore said.

"Could Sirius have helped him with his studies and otherwise?" Ginny asked.

"Why do you think that?" Molly asked.

"Think about it. Sirius was the first-born son of the Blacks. He was trained in the pureblood ways in his childhood, even if he hated it. And the only times that Harry was not supervised all the time was during summer holidays. At Privet Drive, if he had got some books he had owl ordered beforehand, he could have used them to learn and Sirius could have put it in his letters. He was keyed into the wards to not make Harry suspicious why he didn't get mail from his godfather.

"Then when we stayed at Grimmauld Place, Sirius could have helped Harry learn what he didn't already understood in the subjects he did additionally. I know he took Ancient Runes at Hogwarts, because I once asked him about his electives. Sirius would also have known about the possibility of emancipation. I am sure he would have looked it up when he ran from his parents. And during that summer Harry was really angry with Ron and Hermione for keeping the communication embargo. It fits all. If Harry kept his abilities a secret to not upset Ron and Hermione and learned about the possibility of getting his emancipation it would work. I just don't know how he would have done all the work." Ginny said.

"The Room of Requirement probably." Hermione said. "Think about it, Dobby told him about the room that helped us learn undetected from Umbridge. It is possible that if you asked the room, you could get a place where time didn't matter. What if he got such a place? He could have learned without us ever noticing. The room gives you everything you ask for. You just have to be specific."

"Wouldn't we have noticed that?" Ron asked.

"Not if he did it when we were sleeping. He knew from Professor McGonagall that he needed the best marks possible for getting into the classes he needed for his N.E.W.T.s that would enable him to become an auror. Think about it. If he asked for a room where one hour passed outside but a month inside. He wouldn't be tired to make anybody suspect something, but still get much training time. I am sure if he snuck out regularly you would have noticed, but once or twice a month only for an hour and in the middle of the night or really early in the morning? Not that unbelievable." Hermione explained her idea.

Dumbledore pondered about that. He would test if the room really could do that.

"That could be an explanation. I just don't understand that he didn't tell anybody anything." Molly said.

"Perhaps the Dursleys did their job too well. Think about it. Children that grow up in abusive homes don't trust easily. We saw that in Harry that he didn't trust adults easily. He always confided in us. But if he was even more careful than that, we would have thought he told us everything but held back the really important things. And with Sirius, an experienced prankster, helping him after third year, he would have an idea what to look for. And Ron's escapade after his name came out of the goblet didn't really help our cause." Hermione suggested.

They all had to agree that was possibly the best explanation they would get. It didn't really matter now. Harry was gone and before they found him and put him under controlling charms nothing would help them.

_**Flashback end**_

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><p>How did they say, hindsight was twenty-twenty? But why didn't he show his talent before when he had been considered for Ravenclaw which made the most sense of all the other houses? If he could just ask the hat but he and lately Fawkes denied him their help. If Fawkes would help him he would have found the brat easily. Nobody could hide from a phoenix. But he didn't have the power to completely control such a strong magical creature. He could bind the phoenix to him but if he sent him away to look for Harry, Fawkes could break through the enchantment that bound him and leave for good. And he needed the bird to prove his siding with the light. It was just frustrating.<p>

Sadly the world was a big place and without anything from Harry like blood or hair he wouldn't be able to find him magically. He could be anywhere now. The goblins were the only ones that knew where he was, but they were bound by treaty to keep the secrets of their customers. Nobody, not the Ministry, not the ICW or any other institution could force them to tell anything.

His best chance would be to continue placing outlooks in the English speaking countries as that would be where Harry would try to hide. He didn't speak any other languages and to completely disappear he would have to go to school somewhere until he was at least eighteen. None of the magical ways he knew about that Harry could have accessed enabled him to permanently learn another language. They only worked for a month at most.

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><p><strong>That's that. I hope you liked it. Until next chapter.<strong>


	5. A New Case

**Hello everybody, this is the new chapter of my story.**

**I hope you lilke my idea for the case. I never before tried to make up a case. **

**As usual I don't own anything of Detective Conan and Harry Potter.**

**Thanks for all those that sent me reviews and PMs.**

**Happy reading.**

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><p><strong>A New Case<strong>

Shinichi and Harry stood next to each other in the back of the crime scene. They had just been hanging out at the mystery section of the bookstore, discussing which novel was better, one of Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot novels, which Harry liked, or Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, which Shinichi swore upon, when one of the other customers suddenly fell down twitching like mad. They had jumped into action at once but there was no chance to help the man.

Harry had acted first and got the entrances closed, Shinichi began looking around for hints, traces and peculiar behaviour of witnesses. While Harry called Inspector Megure, Shinichi began asking those next to the victim for clues und observations.

"Inspector Megure will be here in ten minutes, Shinichi." Harry reported.

"Alright, did you see something unusual, Harry?"

"Yes, some persons tried to get out of here, but I stopped them. I also instructed the cashier to not stop the surveillance camera because we need the tapes as proof."

Shinichi just nodded. He knew Harry would take care to make sure nobody left a crime scene without them knowing if he could prevent it. By now the two of them were like a well-oiled machine. What Shinichi didn't know was that Sirius had trained Harry in silent casting of detection spells. This ability came in handy when he needed more information than the police was willing to give out. Besides, except for Inspector Megure and his team, most of the policemen didn't take that well to high school detectives.

More than once Harry's spells had given him clues that he and Shinichi combined to the full picture and showed up the professionals with their deduction skills. It was quite funny. He was doing it just now and found that this time the murder was not just that, a murder. There were traces of magic around. He tried to calm his increasing pulse and tried to reach out with his magical detection skills.

The traces were faint. Not a cast spell then. But what could it be? It felt like surveillance charms that were in place even before the murder happened. But who was the man to interest wizards? Or wasn't he the target for them? That moment Megure arrived. He was a man with a stocky build who wore a dark orange coat with a matching hat. He had a black moustache and projected authority. He was an old friend of Shinichi's father Yusaku and therefore knew Shinichi from an early age.

"Police, stand aside!" He ordered.

He went straight to the victim and began asking Shinichi questions. With just a look Harry and Shinichi agreed that Shinichi would handle the direct surroundings of the murder and Harry the farther parts. With this tactic they would surely get more information than otherwise.

"Horrible, I don't know if I could come shopping here again." A woman who was clearly startled said to her companion.

"Yes. I mean, you saw it, he just fell without any trace of contact to others." The other woman answered.

'Now that is interesting.' Harry thought.

"Excuse me, I heard you talking about this horrible crime. Have you seen how it happened?" He asked them politely.

"Y-Yes, we were next to the man. We were looking at the same kind of books. It was strange because which man would look at instructions for professional child care?" The first woman asked.

"We wondered about him and looked which books he was looking up and then he looked really surprised and fell down. Just like that. But who are you to question all this? You are not a policeman."

"No, but I often assist the police together with my best friend, may I introduce myself, Harrison Black. I am a detective. Could you by any chance show me the book the victim read before his death?"

"Harrison Black? Like 'The Hawk'? The famous high school detective? Then this young man over there is Shinichi Kudo?" The second woman asked.

Harry nodded.

"Of course we will help you."

They led Harry to the bookshelf and pointed at the book.

"This is the one." The first woman told Harry.

He nodded and put on gloves. He carefully took the book from the shelf and inspected the pages while using magic.

"I see. Devious trick. He wouldn't know what happened until he felt it. Thank you, I will take this book to the police. It is important evidence. Please be ready to give your statements to the officers." He told the women.

He went over to Shinichi who had already gotten to the same conclusion as Harry.

"Poisoned." Shinichi told Harry.

"You are right and the culprit used this book to do it. The poison is on the pages. It doesn't smell and you can't see it, but there are some small traces of saliva in the corner of one page which is slightly darkened. I would say that it is a strong poison. As soon as the poison reached the man's hands and he licked his fingers to turn the pages, he ingested the poison and died. Must be as potent as cyanide. But I couldn't find any smell of almond." Harry explained.

"We now know how it was done, but this doesn't give us any clues about the who and why. The only thing we know is that the culprit must have been close to the victim. Otherwise he couldn't have prepared the trap. It needs precise planning to do something like this." Shinichi said.

"Yes. The chance, that an innocent would be poisoned would be extremely high. You had to know the ticks of the victim well to know he would lick his fingers to turn pages of a book in a bookshop. Normally you would only do that with your own books."

"Right Harry. I think we should see if there are surveillance tapes of this part of the shop." Shinichi suggested.

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><p>Inspector Megure had a bad headache. This case was really troublesome. The only thing they had found out so far was that the victim had been poisoned. They didn't know how yet, the investigation was still going on and the witnesses around didn't seem to have seen much. It would take some time to question everybody. And where the hell had Shinichi vanished to? He had been surprised that the boy was here, but he was glad. Shinichi's help was invaluable in the investigations. He usually found the culprit and solved the case.<p>

While he had been reserved at first, the son of his old friend Yusaku Kudo had proven himself very capable of professionally investigating a crime scene, securing of evidence and putting the pieces of the puzzle together to find the culprit. So he now saw no problem in allowing Shinichi to help them with their cases. After all, the police was profiting from solving the cases as fast as possible. And perhaps he could recruit the boy for their department after he finished with school.

In the last half a year he had had a friend helping with the cases. Harrison Black had proven to be as smart as Shinichi was. Those two combined were the worst nightmare of criminals around. Both were incredibly gifted in deduction and analysis and seemingly Black was able to spot things even his professionals didn't see before he pointed them out. He would have to convince the two to start at the police after graduation. It would be a shame to waste such talent.

He looked around and then he spotted not only Shinichi but also Harrison. He should have known that one wasn't at the crime scene without the other. Both seemed to be in deep discussion.

"Shinichi, Harrison, where were you?" He asked.

"Looking for the culprit and a way to prove his guilt." Harry answered.

"You already know?" Megure asked impressed.

"Yes, Harry found the way how the victim was poisoned by questioning two women who were next to the victim when he died. We also have suspicions who the culprit is, but without proof we can't let you arrest him. We also are still figuring out the motive." Shinichi explained.

"Could you please send two of your subordinates to investigate the victim's background? We have a suspicion relating to the weapon used but we have to be absolutely sure." Harry asked.

"I can do that." Megure answered and did as the boys asked.

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><p>During the time his men were digging up the needed information Shinichi and Harry got the results of the forensic. The picture began to become clear and Harry finally found the needed proof while watching the tapes and rechecking the scene with his magical scans.<p>

While Shinichi knew nothing about his friend's magical abilities, he trusted Harry when he said, he had found the evidence needed to corner the culprit. He had been right in every case he said he had found proof. They then waited for the officers sent out for information on the background of the victim to come back. Finally after half an hour they came back and gave Megure the file.

"The victim is Raichi Takeda, 43 years old, leading employee at a company specialized in drill productions. He is single after divorcing his wife two years ago, his wife got guardianship of their daughter Emiko, 5 years old. Both live here in Tokyo district Shinjuku. After some heavy arguments he was only allowed to visit their daughter every second weekend for three hours. He was fighting at court to be able to have more time with his daughter.

"He is financially well off, no known debts. From his colleagues' statements we can conclude, that he was a nice enough man. They didn't know about enemies, as he never really spoke about his private life at work except for his daughter." Inspector Chiba, a slightly plumb man with short spiky brown hair, read to Megure and the others.

"His wife is known to be a lifestyle fanatic. She is guest at most of the high society parties. There are questions how she manages to finance this lifestyle as she only has a part time job in a fashion boutique. While she earns a lot for a fashion consultant, it should not be enough to go to all those parties."

"I understand." Megure said. "Have you checked her alibi for the time of the murder?" He asked.

"Yes. She was at the nursery school to get her daughter one hour before the murder happened and was with the child from then on. She couldn't have done it in the assumed timeframe."

"No, but she could hire a professional to help her." Shinichi said.

"We have finally found all the clues and now have the complete picture of this case." Harry added.

"You know what happened?" Megure asked astounded.

"Yes, Inspector. Why don't we start at the beginning? From what your subordinates found out, the victim was a family man and wanted nothing more than to have more rights in the raising of his daughter. That explains why he would be in the child care section of the shop. To be prepared for questioning by the court when the question of guardianship would be discussed again.

"The man was well off and as he doesn't have other children besides little Emiko; she would be the sole heir of his fortune. As her legal guardian her mother would directly profit from his death as she has control of Emiko's finances until her daughter comes of age. Pretending to put the money away for Emiko for a later date she could use some of the money to finance her lifestyle." Shinichi explained.

"For somebody who knew that he would do anything to be prepared for the court it would be easy to prepare a trap in a book shop. The weapon the murderer used was this book." Harry showed the book, which was in a plastic bag put in there by those securing evidence.

"Some of the pages are covered in a potent poison that he digested by licking his fingers to turn the pages of the book. We don't know the type of poison yet, but I am sure an analysis of the poison will find that part out soon enough. To be able to spring the trap you had to know this habit of the victim as not many people would risk being forced to buy the book by brushing through the pages.

"Furthermore the book must have been one the victim was looking for for some time, otherwise it wouldn't have been sure that he would take this book and no other. As those nice ladies told me…" He indicated the two women who were next to the victim at the time of death "…he took the book from the shelf, looked through it a bit and then fell down. The book used as a weapon is one of the most praised works of an American author who specializes in guardianship cases of divorce children. It is really hard to get this book in Japan." Harry said.

"So we have a motive but the mother of his daughter can't be the culprit as she was with her daughter." Megure summarized what the two boys had told them.

"That would normally be the case but why don't we consult the surveillance videos? There are some really interesting things on the tape two hours before the murder happened." Shinichi said.

He and Harry led the inspector and three other policemen into the video room of the shop where the owner was waiting for them.

"Everything is prepared like you asked me to." The owner said to Shinichi.

"Thanks." Shinichi answered.

"Please look closely at the shelves during the time the video is showing." Harry said.

The looked at the video but none of the policemen was able to see something special.

"What are we supposed to see?" Megure asked confused.

"I have to admit I also didn't see it first but Harry as usual saw a little difference during the period from nine minutes past two to eleven minutes past two. I would guess someone tampered with the camera for two minutes and exchanged the book on the shelf for the one which was the weapon. The only difference you can see is the different position and sort of the book in question." Shinichi said.

Murmurs of Hawk made the round between the policemen. None of them had seen anything before it was pointed out to them and they watched the time period again.

"This book shop is not a high security facility so it is not that hard to distract the owner or just use a busy time during the day to temper with the camera for some minutes and exchange the book. Sadly for our murderer she made a small mistake." Harry said taking another tape and playing it. It showed the shop entrance.

"This is the tape of the camera at the entrance during the period from five minutes past two to a quarter past two."

They saw a woman coming in with a man and then the two separated. The woman went right and the man straight ahead. Then the woman suddenly disappeared from the tape.

"You see, the camera was manipulated a bit crude at this point. They didn't make sure that the woman was out of the picture soon enough to put in the filler tape which was prepared. If you would look at the woman's hand." Shinichi supplied.

And sure enough the woman was holding the book that had been the weapon.

"But that would mean that the book which was poisoned was at the shelf for nearly two hours and it didn't matter to her that others besides the intended victim could have been killed. If the book was this rare to get in Japan others could have been tempted to take it." Megure said outraged.

Shinichi and Harry nodded solemnly. Harry suspected that there could have been the magical involvement he had detected before, but he said nothing. It didn't change the case that probably the woman was a witch and just wanted to get rid of her muggle husband. She had planned and executed a murder and that was unforgivable. If the police thought she had endangered innocents it wouldn't change the outcome. He just hoped the girl was safe and not left with magic hating relatives like he had been.

Inspector Megure summoned the ex-wife of the victim and soon she broke down under the questioning and told them everything. She was frightened to lose her daughter to her husband. Harry performed a silent spell to find out if the woman was a witch and got the confirmation for his theory. He used a moment when all the others were distracted to cast a notice me not charm to speak with her.

"Do you have any wizarding relatives to take care of your daughter?" He asked her quietly.

The woman looked at him surprised.

"You are a wizard?" She asked unbelievingly.

"Yes, I am and I know from experience how hard it can be to grow up with magic hating muggles. While I have nothing against most muggles, I know that there are extreme cases and I would like to spare your daughter the experience."

"No I don't have any relatives left. My family came from Europe in the 1940s fleeing from Grindelwald's followers. My grandparents and parents died some years ago and all I have left is Emiko. My ex-husband knew about magic and wanted to keep our daughter away from it. He loved her, there is no doubt, but he couldn't understand that magic is a part of her. She would have suffered under the scrutiny when her magic acted up and nobody was there to help her learn to control it. I just didn't know any other solution. I used a potion with similar properties as a notice me not charm that would work for anybody except my ex-husband."

"While you did take measures to prevent innocents to be involved you killed a man who just loved his daughter and wanted to do whatever he thought would keep her safe and happy. You should have tried to show him the good things magic could do not let him believe in the bad ones. Ignorance and misinformation was the reason for this and it could have been prevented. There is no excuse to take another life. It makes you as bad as the people your family fled from in the past. Murder is murder and inexcusable in any case." Harry told her with conviction.

The woman looked at Harry and then down, becoming aware how far she had sunk in her ambition to give her child the life she thought she deserved.

"I wish I had met you earlier, Harrison Black. Perhaps this wouldn't have happened if somebody just had told me what an idiot I was. I know I have no right to ask a favour of you, but please help Emiko to find a loving new home. There won't be any problems with money as I have inherited a good amount of galleons."

"I will. I promise." Harry said getting a thankful nod from the mother and lifted the charm.

Shinichi and Harry gave the police their good byes and went home.

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><p><strong>That's it for this chapter. We are getting closer to the shrinking episode, but before that happens an unforeseen event will take place. What? That would be telling. And for pairings, I'm considering your suggestion of pairing Harry with Shiho. If I do, you'll see later. There is much time until Ai appears in the story after all.<strong>

**Until next time.**


	6. Surprising Revelations

**Hi everybody.**

**I'm back with a new chapter. Thanks to all those that wrote me such great reviews. I'm glad you liked my thought up case.**

**Next chapter I'll show you how I intend to combine magic with Detective Conan. Let's just say Dumbles is a really, really evil man in tthis story. **

**The usual disclaimer.**

**Happy reading.**

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><p><strong>Surprising Revelations<strong>

Harry opened the door to his apartment when he heard children laughing. Then Ayumi, the neighbour's daughter and her two friends came around the corner of the floor where the lift was.

"Hello, Harry." Ayumi greeted happily.

"Hello, Ayumi, Genta and Mitsuhiko how are you three?" Harry asked smiling.

The three children were really nice and he had once babysitted for the Yoshidas when they had gone out for their wedding day anniversary. And the three had been thrilled when they found out that he was one half of the new famous detective duo the media reported about. He had spent a lot of time telling them about some cases, of course he left out the scary details that were inappropriate for kids their age.

"Have you heard of the murder that happened at the book store a few hours ago?" Genta asked.

"Yes, I have." Harry said smiling not revealing he had been there and solved the case together with Shinichi.

"They have only said in the newsflash that the investigation was not finished and that the police would give a press conference when they knew the culprit." Mitsuhiko told him.

"When was the news flash?" Harry asked.

"An hour ago or so. We came here to see if they have solved the case now. The evening news should start soon." Ayumi said.

"Then I don't want to keep you waiting any longer. Have fun." Harry said forcing himself not to grin.

If they found out that he already knew everything about the case and had helped solving it they would pepper him with questions and he wouldn't get any peace for at least an hour. So he went into the apartment and locked the door behind him.

Sirius sat on the couch watching TV.

"Hey, Harry, did you have a good day?" He asked.

"Depends on your point of view. I had a normal day at school, Shinichi and I went to the bookstore to look for new mystery novels, got caught up in a new murder case …" Harry narrated to be stopped by Sirius.

"Again?" He asked.

"Well, somehow we seem to attract trouble. By the way, we need to contact the Japanese Ministry for Magic. The culprit in the case was a witch and she murdered her muggle husband as he didn't want their daughter to grow up to be a witch. He was a good man and father but obviously was a little closed minded regarding magic. The mother asked me if I would make sure that Emiko grew up in a loving family. I promised her I would. It would also be best if the Ministry of Magic made sure she doesn't escape from a muggle prison by apparating out."

Harry didn't need to say anything else. Sirius knew how Harry would always help children when he could. It was his way to ensure his childhood didn't repeat with another child.

"Of course. I will contact them tomorrow morning. Are you alright?" He asked concerned.

"Yes, I am. It helps being able to bring those who committed the crime to justice. And Shinichi and I as a team have got really good at finding the culprits. But it always pains me to see people getting killed for one stupid reason or another."

"I understand. Just never lower your guard. Moody has a point to practice constant vigilance. With your success in convicting criminals not only wizards will be after you but also muggle criminals."

"I promise, Sirius. I don't want to die. I like my new life here with you. While I know that I will someday have to put a final stop to Voldy's reign of terror I will enjoy the time I have until then."

That was one thing Sirius wanted to spare Harry but he knew he couldn't. Voldemort would come after Harry no matter where he was. The possibility that someone could be able to kill him was enough to make the man hunt Harry for the rest of his life. So the only way to protect Harry was to train him to enable him to protect himself and the best defence was a good offence in his opinion. Harry was well on his way learning martial arts for his physical progress, combat magic, advanced transfiguration and charms and potions.

The teacher for potions they had contacted, had needed to teach Harry the very basics of the subject that Snivellus had just ignored to teach and Sirius and Harry had learned a lot of Japanese curses that day. Obviously here in Japan the Potion Masters had a very different idea how to properly teach Potions to their students. Harry had to spend five weeks with learning the proper brewing methods. Once he had understood which method had to be used for which ingredient, he saw many similarities with cooking.

When he questioned his teacher about it, he was given a satisfied wide grin. Rumihiko Wakanashi, his teacher, told him that now they could really start learning how to brew potions properly. Indeed the brewing of potions was closely related to cooking high class meals. Nearly every fool could cook up a simple dish like boil some noodles and warm a pre-made sauce, that was nothing special. But a true master could take the same noodles, add selected seafood, some vegetables and create a light sauce from the basic ingredients to create a masterpiece. You needed to know how to fry the seafood to the point where it had it's best taste, you had to use special methods for cooking different kinds of vegetables. And you could make different sauces.

There were so many possibilities to mix the same ingredients to get different results just by using different methods of preparation. The same was true for brewing potions. The heat you used for the potion, the kind of preparation for the ingredient, he showed the process to gain juice from a shrivelfig. By simply cutting it, you got some juice, but if you squashed it with the flat side of a silver knife you got so much more of it. Harry was very impressed. He started to really like brewing potions now that he understood what to do in which situation.

He also learned about strategy, occlumency and legilimency, and obscure ritual theory. He first had to repair his mental shields after the brutal attacks Snape had used before he could even think of starting with true occlumency. It took a month of mediation to get to that point.

They wanted to find out how the maniac had cheated death in 1981. After all, if the maniac had managed to come back after being hit by a rebounding killing curse once, who said he wouldn't be able to do it again? They had centred their research upon the mysterious diary that had possessed Ginny in Harry's second year at Hogwarts and the word horcrux that Harry had heard Dumbledore calling him. Harry had a feeling that the diary was more important than a means to open the chamber of secrets again. And for some reason he was something called a horcrux, which led to Dumbledore wanting him dead. And Harry had got really good at figuring things out.

Sirius liked Harry's new best friend Shinichi Kudo. The boy also had the urge to serve justice and save as many people as he could, which complemented Harry's personality. And having a friend who could compete with Harry in the area of intelligence was a huge advantage.

"So I think it would be a good idea to switch to the evening news as they will probably report your newest success." Sirius said grinning.

"Yes. I met the three kids at the floor. I'm pretty sure they will be a bit angry with me that I didn't tell them that I was involved in the case they told me about. They wanted to see the news to find out if it was already solved." Harry told him.

Sirius switched channels and a few minutes later the evening news started.

_Good evening ladies and gentlemen. This is Nichiuri TV with the evening news._

_Great Britain has been target of a terrorist attack. Today at 17.35 British times, there has been a bomb explosion at Edinburgh. From first official statements the death toll is 31 with an unknown number of injured people at the moment. Until now nothing about the culprits is known. The government has not been given a prior warning so it is unknown if this is a new terrorist group that is acting up, an isolated event or something else. The prime minister has yet to give a public statement. We will continue researching and report any news in this event._

Harry clenched his fists. That had probably been orchestrated by Voldemort. But he couldn't do anything at the moment. He wasn't strong enough to be of any help in the fight yet. A live call to the Nichiuri TV reporter in Edinburgh didn't really give any more information except to show some pictures of the site of the explosion from the air. The report of the terrorist attack was followed by some other international news. Then the news of other areas of Japan followed until they reached the report of the murder in the bookshop.

_Today business man Raichi Takeda was murdered. The investigation team from the Tokyo police headquarter was once again supported by high school detectives Shinichi Kudo and Harrison Black. Those two boys are really incredible. With their sharp minds they were able to solve the case before the police was able to do. Critical for the success of the investigation was according to Inspector Juzo Megure, who headed the investigation at the crime site, the sharp eyes of Harrison Black, who again did his nickname 'The Hawk' justice. _

_We, the citizens of Tokyo, I think, can be really happy to have such outstanding criminalists coming up, who are willing to help the police with their abilities. Those two boys are really saviours of our police. And I know many teenage girls have the same opinion as I have. I think only Kaito Kid has an equal number of fans._

Harry groaned. Why did the reporter have to compare him and Shinichi with the phantom thief? And it didn't help that Sirius was laughing madly in his armchair.

"As popular as Kaito Kid you are now?" He teased Harry.

"Shut up, Sirius. I haven't even been involved in one case of the phantom thief, the so called magician in the moonlight. But it would be interesting. He is pretty good at his tricks. But what I don't get is his habit to give the stolen things back to the owner. As if it was just a game to him. Not your normal thief who does this to become rich."

"Well, I can't help you there. How are your studies coming along?"

"Pretty good. I shouldn't have any problems in the upcoming tests."

"Good to know. During your holidays we are going to travel to Australia for a week. The Aborigine wizards have agreed to help train you in wandless magic. They will use a time compression ward so that you have one month of training instead of a week."

"That's good. I always wanted to see some sights in Australia. We can combine it with the training. And I want to see kangaroos and koala bears." Harry said enthusiastically.

Sirius just smiled. Harry had changed. He had come out of his shell somewhat. Where he had hidden his true self before, he now showed it to those he trusted. And he was lucky to be one of them. He just hoped Dumbles had a hard time in Britain. He wished he had the power to bring the man down for what he did to his godson, but he knew he didn't.

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><p>Said old man sat in his office at Hogwarts, sucking on a lemon drop and pondering what he could do to get the public back on his side. Loosing Harry was a stain on his reputation. The damned Skeeter woman had registered her animagus form and written several fiery articles against him. Some also showed Harry as a traitor for leaving but one harsh return letter from Harry's lawyer shut her up for good. And as the lawyer was under an oath of secrecy and a capable occlumens he couldn't find out where the brat was.<p>

Voldemort had taken to attack at least once a week now. The absence of the so called Chosen One had encouraged him to launch a massive offence. His Order had taken some big losses. First had been Arabella Figg, who had been murdered in her house when the Death Eaters turned up in Surrey to see if they could find hints on Harry's location. The Dursleys were also dead. All three adults had been brutally tortured and killed, the magical residence proved Bellatrix Lestrange had been involved, and the son was unconscious at St. Mungo's. The healers didn't know if he would make it.

Then he had lost Dedalus Diggle and Mundungus Fletcher. Both killed in a surprise raid at Diagon Alley. Molly Weasley was in hysterics, the Weasley twins refused to talk to him, turned out they wanted nothing to do with him after they found out about him paying their younger siblings to spy on Harry. They had cut ties with their family like Percy had but had left their parents with a well worded letter, that they were ashamed that the Weasley family would sink so low to try and steal from an orphan who had done nothing but being their friend. More, they owed two life debts to Harry, one for Ginny and one for Arthur.

The twins had also correctly concluded that the goblins knew where Harry had gone. They had made contact with Gringotts and politely asked them if it would be possible for the goblins to forward a letter to Harry. They had even sworn a blood oath that they didn't want to harm Harry and his interests. Dumbledore had only found out that piece of information much later when they had warded their shop against him. He couldn't even get the location of Harry from them, because they didn't know. But they were keeping Harry informed about the things in Great Britain, he was sure of it.

Really, damn those blasted goblins. They had refused time and again his demand to gain access to the Potter vaults while Harry had been with his relatives, stating that only the heir could do it and until he appeared in person, they wouldn't give out any gold beyond what the will had stated. As at that time it had been impossible to use Harry to go there, he couldn't be allowed to find out his real financial situation after all, he had shifted his plans for after Harry's death and thought that the fake will, which made the Weasleys, Hermione Granger and him the main beneficiaries, would solve that problem, but when the twins found out about it, their reaction hadn't been pretty.

Remus and Nymphadora had left the Order too. They were working on their own to make a difference against Voldemort. But as Remus was appalled after the twins informed him of his (Dumbledore's) doings and Nymphadora loved Remus, they had not spoken to him ever since. Recruiting new members also went very slowly. Most people were too scared to do anything against Voldemort in fear he would target their families and without a beacon of hope, which was Harry's role, they had massive problems to keep the public from falling into complete panic. And sadly he was too old in most eyes to be the one to beat Voldemort.

He had hoped that Ron and Hermione could take over the DA and train them to be the fresh blood that the Order would soon need to fill the gaps the deaths of the older members had torn. But that idea had been thwarted as soon as his two spies had suggested it to their house mates. He had the copy of the memory from Hermione in his pensieve.

Flashback

Hermione stumbled into his office, her robes a bit ruffled and her hair torn from her ponytail, which was how she mostly wore it these days.

"Professor, we have a massive problem." She said, trying to catch her breath.

"What is the matter, Miss Granger?" He asked.

"Ron and I suggested the other members of the DA in Gryffindor to continue our training to be prepared for Voldemort. It would be easiest if I just showed you my memories. I don't think I could tell you everything without forgetting something important." She said.

He nodded and took his pensieve from his cupboard. Hermione put her wand to her temple and withdraw a silver thread. Then she placed it in the bowl. Dumbledore signalled her to start and she put her head in the bowl and dived inside. Moments later Dumbledore stood next to her. They were in the Gryffindor Common Room.

"_So, why did you want to talk to us, Hermione?" Parvati asked._

"_Ron and I had the idea that we should continue our training like we did last year with the DA. Voldemort is getting bolder and attacking openly now. We need to prepare to fight him." She said._

"_And who would be our teacher and leader?" Neville asked falsely calm._

"_Well, Ron and I thought we could take over. We are Harry's best friends and helped him last year looking up spells for the group to learn." She answered._

"_Interesting. You still call yourself Harry's best friend. Did you know that Harry found out about your little conspiracy with the headmaster?" He asked, now dropping all pretence of calmness._

"_What are you talking about, Neville?" Ron asked, trying to play dumb._

"_You know what I am talking about, Weasley." He said, shocking the two by using only Ron's surname._

"_Harry overheard your conversation in the hospital wing last year. He knows you only befriended him, because the headmaster paid you for it. He knows that you planned to kill him together with Voldemort. You were only after his fortune. He had been a loyal friend to you both, hell, he even saved your life from the troll in first year, Granger. But what did you do? You betrayed him. Be glad he is generally a nice guy, or he would have called in the life debt you owe him for that. You don't deserve to call yourself his friends." He scathingly said._

"_You don't believe him? He is just making that up. Nobody knows Harry better than me and I would never betray him." Ron shouted, only to look at a wall of wands that were pointed at him and Hermione._

"_You wouldn't betray him? Don't make me laugh, Weasley. You already proved you would in an instant. Remember your fourth year? You left him because you thought he cheated his way into the Tournament. Because you were jealous of his fame and money. And what did the headmaster do? He left Harry to fend for himself. No, I won't risk my life for that manipulative old man. I will train to protect myself, but never under your leadership. I don't follow traitors." Katie sneered at him._

_Many others nodded their consent._

"_Yes, our dear headmaster thinks so highly of the safety of his students." Parvati said sarcastically. "Let's see. In our first year he placed the Philosopher's stone at the castle tempting You-Know-Who coming here and building a nice little training course for Harry." She started._

"_In second year there was a basilisk on the loose in the castle. Many muggleborns were petrified, yet he didn't do anything remotely sensible to stop it. Again Harry had to save the school and nearly died. He would have if Fawkes wasn't better than his master and saved him." Dean added the next fact._

"_I third year we were surrounded by dementors. Yet nobody thought about teaching us basic defence or remedies against them. Harry remedied that state last year by teaching the DA the patronus charm. I won't say we would have been able to produce patroni, but knowing about the effect of chocolate and even getting a silver mist would have done all of us good. I will only give him one reprieve, the botched up mess with the innocent Sirius Black was the Ministry's fault." Lavender said._

"_In fourth year a Death Eater impersonated one of the headmaster's oldest friends. Don't tell me he wouldn't have noticed something strange about Moody after some time. We all were in danger from him, but mostly Harry who had to fight in lethal tasks all over the year. In the end You-Know-Who returned using Harry, who again was on his own." Seamus said._

"_Finally last year our dear headmaster let Umbridge do what she wanted. Blood quills like she used are severely controlled. Not one of our dear teachers helped or took our complaints serious. Harry especially was tortured. I am sure you, like good little spies, told the headmaster what was going on, but he didn't do anything. Why should he? Keeping Harry miserable is his life ambition to get the Potter money. That are not the actions of a man that has the best interest of his students at heart." Collin finished._

"_You don't even have to try lying to the other houses as well. They all know what you did to Harry. I showed them the letter I got from Harry, informing me what you did to him. There is nothing better than the truth, isn't it?" Neville said._

"_You know where Harry is?" Hermione shouted._

"_No, I didn't say that. Harry told me he wouldn't tell me where he is, so nobody can steal the information from my mind by using Legilimency. By the way, if the headmaster or his pet Death Eater try getting into my head, I will bring this up with the Wizengamot. You can report that to the manipulative old coot. I am the heir to the title of Lord Longbottom and will take my place once I have graduated. If he wants one of the old families against him, let him try. I will never follow him. My parents did, they trusted him to protect them, but they paid for it. They are nothing more than vegetables in St. Mungo's because Death Eaters managed to get the location._

"_Some protection that was. And not managing to find the Death Eater spy in his Order over such a long period of time? One simple oath on their magic that they didn't work for Voldemort would have done the trick to find the spy. The Potters paid for that failure on his part with their lives and Harry was put into misery with his abusive relatives. I am glad he got away from all of that. Something you traitors will never understand. I am glad my eyes have been opened to the manipulation. You will notice that we don't like traitors. Harry was the only one to really do something to fight Voldemort. Now he is away. And the old coot can't do a thing to bring Voldemort down. He had his chance, he messed it up."_

"_You can't speak about the headmaster like that!" Hermione screeched._

"_You will see what we can do." Dean said, firing a stinging hex at her._

_Parvati, Lavender and Collin soon joined him aiming at both Ron and Hermione._

"_You are a disgrace for Gryffindor House. You are as bad as Malfoy. From today on you will be cast-outs in this house. You will learn what it means to be a traitor to everything Gryffindor stands for." Katie said._

_Lavender and Seamus moved forward and tore the house crests from their robes. _

"_You are no Gryffindors, you don't have the right to wear the crest of the house anymore. Go back to your master and wail about it. It won't help. We now know what kind of person he is. He is as bad as Voldemort in his own right. Leader of the Light indeed, Dark Lord II would be more fitting." Lavender said._

"_You are one to talk, you didn't believe him last year." Hermione shouted._

"_And we learned that Harry was right and apologized. But we never did what you did to him. We didn't pretend to be his best friends and stabbed him in the back at the same time." Seamus retorted._

"_You have no friends in this house anymore. Be glad we don't do more." Neville said. _

_They both realized that he was clearly the leader of the group. How had Neville Longbottom, the failure, risen to that position within the house? Hermione and Ron fled the room. Ginny had been in the library, doing some homework that was due the next day and therefore not present, but she too would soon feel the scorn of her house mates._

They exited the pensieve and Dumbledore sighed heavily. This was getting worse with every day. Now he had an organized revolt against him within the student body. Last year he had used it for his own gain, with Umbridge being the target of hatred for the students. Now they had found out about his plans for Harry and turned against him. He couldn't obliviate all the students. He was sure Longbottom had warned them against it and only a mass effect would work and even he couldn't do that.

Flashback end

Hogwarts had had a decrease of students. For some reason a lot of the muggleborns had been withdrawn from the school. If he just could find out why they did so. Hogwarts was one of the few locations that were safe from Voldemort. He didn't dare to attack as long as he was there. Well that was at least what Dumbledore thought. If he could be listening into the meeting that was taking place at Voldemort's headquarters, he wouldn't be so sure.

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><p>Voldemort was in a really good mood. The old fool was lulled in false security in his castle, the brat was far away and didn't disturb his plans by raising moral in Britain, his attacks were going well and he could already count the days until the old fool's death. Severus had highly entertained him with the news of the fallout between Dumbledore and Potter. The old man just didn't learn his lessons. You couldn't manipulate strong individuals forever without them rebelling. And the brat was strong he had to admit it. Otherwise he wouldn't have managed to escape him so often.<p>

Of course he would defeat the brat in the end, he was after all the most powerful wizard in the world, but for now he could wait until Potter came back. It would be interesting to find out how much the brat would have got better. The fights with Dumbledore were becoming boring. The man was getting weaker he thought, as if he was decaying. That was a thought, could he have found his horcrux in the gaunt shack? No, impossible. Nobody knew of his way to guarantee immortality.

And even if he had found one, he didn't know about the others or what they were. He knew for sure, that the cup of Hufflepuff was in Bellatrix' Gringotts vault, the locket of Slytherin was at the lake with the inferi, the diadem of Ravenclaw in the hidden room at Hogwarts only he had found out about, and Nagini beside him. Nothing could kill him. It was a loss that Lucius had allowed for his diary to be destroyed and he paid for it, oh yes he paid with fearing for his son's life. But astonishingly Draco had found a way to get his Death Eaters into the castle. He just needed a bit of time to fix the cabinet.

He would be allowed the time as long as Dumbledore died before the school year at Hogwarts was over. Then nothing would stand in his way to absolute power in Britain. He would rule, strengthen his hold on the population before conquering the continent. It would be a work of years, but he had time, after all he was immortal. Now it was time to hear the reports of his inner circle.

After two hours of reports he was sure that except one slight delay everything was working as he wished for it. The ministry was undermined, every day they got more people to fall under the imperius curse; it would probably take three or four more months to take over the Ministry. Diagon Alley was nearly deserted out of fear there could be an attack. Hogsmeade was wary and Godric's Hollow was near boiling. Yes things worked out well so far.

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><p>Harry woke up in cold sweat. It had been months since he had had visions of Voldemort. But this one was important. More than any other. He had to tell Sirius immediately. He just stopped to write down the locations and kinds of the horcruxes. He now finally knew what horcruxes were. It sounded really bad if they managed to keep Voldemort alive. They would have to do more research in that area, but with knowing that they kept Voldemort alive as long as they were intact, they needed to be destroyed. The one in his head without killing him in the process. He hastily walked down the floor to Sirius bedroom and opened the door. They didn't have time for courtesy. If he tried to knock on the door until Sirius woke, it would be a long time and the fresher the vision was the better.<p>

"Sirius, wake up, I have to tell you something." Harry said loudly, getting only a mumbling from his godfather.

Sighing he went to the bed and began shaking Sirius.

"Harry? What happened?" He asked turning the bedside light on.

When he looked at the stressed out face of his godson, he was instantly awake. He knew the signs of a nightmare and he had hoped Harry was over his harsh ones. The boy was soaked in sweat and pale as a sheet. Sirius took his wand from his holster and summoned a calming draught for the boy.

"Drink and then tell me what happened." He said.

Harry took the potion and drank it in one, sat next to Sirius and waited a minute for the potion to take effect.

"I had a vision of Voldemort. The first one in several months. He was really happy, I think that was the reason I got it. He must have slacked with his occlumency. He obviously was in a meeting with his goons. He is happy about the progress of their efforts. They are slowly taking over the Ministry, MOB's days are numbered until ferret boy manages to repair a cabinet, most people live in fear. But the most important part is, I found out how he cheated death in '81. The horcruxes we tried to find out about, are objects that prevent his death.

"The diary I destroyed in '93 was obviously one and he is extremely angry with Malfoy for that. There are also a ring in the Gaunt shack, don't know where that is, Ravenclaw's diadem at a hidden room at Hogwarts, I think it is the Room of Requirement, Hufflepuff's cup in Bellatrix's vault at Gringotts, Slytherin's locket in a cave full of inferi and his pet snake Nagini, which is around him most of the time. He is sure that nobody knows of them but him. And of course, if MOB is right, there is me. I think it is in my scar. That would explain the weird connection I have with Voldemort.

"He thought about them because he felt that MOB is decaying in his fights. He thinks they are becoming boring. From what I concluded there must be a similar curse on the ring because that started the thoughts about horcruxes."

"I see. This is really important. If we managed to destroy them all, he would be mortal again. I have heard of something like that from other curse-breakers, but I want to research it to be absolutely sure that I am not mistaken. If I am right, we can get rid of one without effort on our part as the goblins hate these kinds of magical objects with a passion and would confiscate the whole Lestrange vault if such a thing was inside Gringotts' walls. They would surely destroy it. And perhaps they know a method to get it out of your scar, if it is one, without killing you. I will never allow you to die other than naturally after a long life."

"Must be pretty dark stuff if you are right. They normally stay completely neutral." Harry said.

"It is. But for now we have to concentrate on finding out if I am right. Thankfully we have the whole Black library at our disposal. I have packed all the books at Grimmauld Place and stored them in the Black family vault at Gringotts, which only we two have access to."

Sirius grinned. It had been a real satisfaction for him to cast Bellatrix and Narcissa out of the family. Now there were no Blacks left in Britain and without being part of the Black family nobody could enter Grimmauld place and have a look at the tapestry which would show him being still very much alive. And as he had named Harry his heir, he also had access.

Harry and Sirius talked for some more minutes until Harry began getting drowsy. Sirius helped Harry back into his bedroom and then both tried to get as much sleep as possible for the next day.

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><p><strong>That's it for this time. Hope you liked it.<strong>


	7. Fateful Day

**Hi, my next chapter is ready. I hope you like it as much as the first ones. Now finally I will bridge over to Shinichi finding out about the magical world. How, you'll have to read for yourselves.**

**The usual disclaimer.**

**Happy reading.**

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><p><strong>Fateful Day<strong>

Near Teitan High School some dark figures made the last preparations for their coup. The boy had become a nuisance and so they had decided to deal with him swiftly. The best part was the muggles would never find out what had happened. They had got one of the very monsters from Britain that terrorized the population with their own fears and dreadful memories. The other muggles around would only feel the effects while the target would get his soul sucked out. And with no wizards capable of casting a patronus charm around it would be over fast.

One might wonder how a muggle had managed to anger wizards, but this one was too dangerous for their future plans. He might not have known he had been involved in cases that were connected to the magical world in Japan, but he had done it. He had cost them money and thwarted or critically delayed some of their plans. It had consequences to meddle in things of their organization.

They gave precise instructions to the dementor and left the immediate surrounding area. No need to become a suspect when the Ministry would come to investigate after it was over.

Shinichi was on his way to school with Ran by his side. She had won the Karate championship and now he was trying to find a date to take her to Tropical Land. They finally agreed on the Saturday next week because this weekend Ran had a meeting with her mother. Shinichi shuddered with the memory. He had never really liked Ran's mother. She had always shouted at him.

They were nearly at the gates when Shinichi spotted Harry who just got lectured by Sonoko about something. Harry looked like he hadn't got a lot of sleep last night. He would have to ask him what the matter was. Suddenly he felt a chill creeping up his spine. He didn't understand. It was February but the weather prognosis had told that they would have at least 11° C today. That was hardly that cold that he would shiver.

Then he felt dread overcoming him. Like every happy memory he had was lost to him. He looked around and saw a look of utter terror on Harry's face. What was happening to his best friend? Then he saw a figure from out of a horror movie coming at them. It was impossible. Things like that didn't exist. But why didn't Ran and Sonoko or for that matter everybody except Harry and him recognize the thing?

"Get inside!" Harry yelled commanding everybody around.

Shinichi had never seen Harry like this. He was normally calm and collected. Then the thing came closer to him and he had only one thought, get the thing away from Ran. She couldn't be close to this thing. He had to protect her. Shinichi began shifting away, trying to figure out a way to get the thing away from Ran. Thankfully it seemed to be more interested in him than her. He began running. The thing followed. He heard Harry shouting at him but didn't hear the words.

"Everybody get inside. I think something is coming up. You will be better protected against the weather inside the school. I will come soon, I just have to find Shinichi and get him here." Harry told the girls.

Then he ran after Shinichi. He was confused. Had Shinichi felt more than the others? Had he even seen the dementor? And why would a dementor be after Shinichi? He wasn't a wizard. He was a muggle and muggle criminals, the only enemies Shinichi would have after his success in investigations, didn't have access to magical creatures. Thankfully he had a bar of chocolate with him. He took a bite and stored the rest for when he found Shinichi.

It took Harry five minutes to find Shinichi, who was shivering on the ground with the dementor hovering over him. There were no other people around which made Harry suspicious but he didn't have the time for this now. He concentrated on a memory of Sirius and called Prongs out. The silver stag charged right at the dementor and like the summer before his fifth year at Hogwarts the stag had no problems getting rid of the evil creature. As soon as the dementor had fled, Harry ran to Shinichi's side and examined his friend.

He was still shivering but he seemed to be okay otherwise. Harry took the chocolate and broke a part for Shinichi.

"Shinichi, look at me. You have to eat this. It is chocolate and it will help you to feel better." Harry explained patiently.

With a lot of coaxing he managed to get Shinichi to eat two bars. The colour returned to his face a bit and he looked at Harry's serious face.

"What was that thing, Harry?" Shinichi asked.

Harry was surprised. If Shinichi could see the dementor that meant he was either a squib or a wizard.

"Please describe what you saw, Shinichi, I am a bit unsure what to tell you." He said.

"I saw some creature right out of a horror movie with a tattered cloak, slimy decayed limbs that glided over the ground straight at me. I felt like all the happiness left me and I was caught in a freezer."

"Alright, Shinichi, I will take you home with me. I don't know how you have managed it but you seem to have drawn the enmity of some dark wizard who sent a dementor at you, that was the thing that chased you. It is a dark magical creature that feeds on the happy emotions of humans. In the worst case they suck your soul out through your mouth by something called the dementor's kiss. The only working defence is a patronus charm, the same thing I did to chase it away but only wizards can cast it."

Shinichi looked at Harry like he had grown a second head.

"You don't want to tell me that magic is real, Harry?" He said sceptically.

"I know it is hard to believe but it is the truth and I can prove it. It is one reason why I am so good at spotting details during investigations. But before I tell you more we have to get to my home. It is warded and we can talk there freely. I don't want anybody to overhear us and those who sent the dementor could still be around to get to you. I have a means of transport for emergencies and we will use it. I think my uncle will have to call the school that we have got in some kind of accident and excuse us for the day."

Shinichi just stared at Harry. He seemed so sure about what he told him. Then Harry took out a necklace from under his dress-shirt.

"You have to touch the necklace, it is a device called a portkey that will take us to my home. One finger is enough, just make sure you have contact" Harry explained.

Shinichi just did what his friend said, thinking the whole thing couldn't get weirder. Then he was pulled forward when Harry said 'activate'. Moments later after being spun around they landed hard on a floor.

"Dammit, I still don't have the landing down." Harry grumbled.

Both boys were on their butts on the floor when Sirius came from the next room, being highly alert.

"Harry? What is the matter? And please explain why you took Shinichi with you by portkey. You know the laws." Sirius wanted to know.

"A dementor was after Shinichi, Sirius. I don't know why somebody would send a magical creature after him. But he could see it, so he must be either a wizard or a squib. Mrs Figg could after all see the dementors too. And she is a squib."

Sirius looked gob smacked. This shaped up to be highly complicated.

"Alright. We can figure his status out later. Did you have chocolate with you to give first aid to him?" He asked.

"Yes, he had two bars."

"Could you two please explain what you are talking about? And I thought your uncle's name was Simon. Why do you call him Sirius?" Shinichi asked.

Harry looked at Sirius sheepishly. He had been so under adrenalin that he hadn't thought to keep their cover.

"Let's get to the living room. There we can talk. I suppose I am to excuse you two for the day at school?" He asked Harry who nodded.

Sirius went to get the phone and called the secretary, explained, that Harry and Shinichi had been caught in an accident and would need to be checked over. They would be back at school tomorrow. When he came back to the living room, he saw Harry had prepared three cups of hot chocolate. Not a bad idea regarding the circumstances.

"Okay Harry, do you want to begin explaining?" Sirius asked.

"I think it would be easiest. Well, Shinichi, it may sound fantastic and unbelievable but magic exists. There is a whole magical world hidden from the normal world. Every country deals with the Statute of Secrecy, that's an international law that regulates that magic is to be hidden from the normal world, in different ways. In my home-country England there are really strict laws.

"Wizards and witches under seventeen are prohibited to use magic outside of school. The most well-known school for magic in Britain is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which I attended until June last year. Here in Japan the laws are a bit more moderate and the witches and wizards just blend in with the non-magical people. In Britain they live isolated from them. At the moment, Britain's wizarding community is in a civil war. The horrible news from Britain about terrorist attacks in reality are attacks from magical extremists that want to rule the country their way.

"They think magic should only be allowed to completely magical families which are called purebloods. They look down on those who are not of complete magical descent like so called halfbloods and muggleborns. Muggle is another word for non-magical people. There are also so called squibs which are children, who can't use magic, born to magical parents. In Britain they mostly live horrible lives as their families normally despise them and they mostly are practically banished into the non-magical world.

"The leader of the fanatics teaches his followers that they are entitled to absolute power over those of inferior blood. He is a big hypocrite because he himself is a halfblood. If his followers would find out they wouldn't believe it and just call the one to tell them the truth a liar. They are really brutal. They kill without remorse. This is the second time the civil war is coming up. The first time it started in the seventies and ended in 1981 when Voldemort, that is the name of the leader, got defeated."

Harry paused and Sirius decided to help out.

"The thing is, Voldemort didn't get defeated by a powerful adult wizard but a one year old baby. This baby became instantly famous as the so called Boy-Who-Lived and wizarding Britain began arresting Voldemort's followers the so called Death Eaters. But the Ministry of magic wasn't that good at doing their jobs. As you know in the muggle world the police conducts a thorough investigation and as long as they can't prove the guilt of a suspect they can't arrest them indefinitely.

"The Ministry of Magic didn't care about that and I was one of the victims of that policy. I was sent to a prison called Azkaban for twelve years. Without ever getting a trial. The problem is Azkaban is guarded by the dementors. As you have probably figured out by now, Harry was the one who was hailed as the hero for defeating Voldemort but he has no memories of doing it. Voldemort came to Harry's home and first killed Harry's father James, my best friend, and then Lily, his mother, who stood between Voldemort and Harry and protected him.

"After killing her, Voldemort tried to kill Harry but the curse somehow rebounded and stripped Voldemort's spirit from his body. He had undergone a very dark magical ritual to ensure his survival even in case he was killed. Until the effects of the ritual aren't countered he can't die. Normally Harry would have grown up with me as I am his godfather but a manipulative old man, his name is Albus Dumbledore, with delusions of grandeur and a terrible greed sent Harry to live with his mother's magic hating sister. As I was in prison and Harry's godmother was tortured to insanity as I found out later, nobody could claim legal guardianship.

"For ten years the wizarding world was fed a hyphenated picture of a superhero instead of a normal boy, what Harry really is. Harry instead was raised like a slave and scapegoat for his relatives. When he got his letter of acceptance into Hogwarts, they tried to prevent him from going there. But the MOB, Harry's short term for manipulative old bastard, which is Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts, had planned everything so he could begin shaping Harry into a weapon and martyr for the light.

"MOB is admired by nearly all British witches and wizards, because he defeated another dark wizard in the 1940's. Throughout Harry's time at school MOB orchestrated several tests to get Harry used to fighting Voldemort. He purposely endangered a child just so he could get the glory of mentoring the one to finish of Voldemort for good and the whole fortune of the Potter family which is enormous. He even manipulated and bribed Harry's closest friends which Harry found out at the end of the school year.

"I had escaped from Azkaban in 1993 and wanted to protect Harry from the one who betrayed Harry's parents to Voldemort which led to their deaths. We had him captured but at the last moment he managed to escape. Without the traitor alive, I couldn't prove my innocence and was forced to flee again. In 1995 Voldemort managed to get a new body using a dark ritual and he used Harry's blood as a core ingredient. The Minister, a corrupt, incompetent and pompous fool, decided Harry and MOB were lying about Voldemort's return and began a slandering campaign in the newspaper. You have to know, Shinichi, most wizards don't have an ounce of logic and most actually believed the lies about Harry being an attention seeking liar."

"I can continue, Sirius. You know, I never liked being famous for something that had cost me my parents but for most of a year I was slandered in the press, tortured by a Ministry official who came to teach at Hogwarts, shunned by my schoolmates, mind raped by another professor under the pretence of learning how to protect my mind from Voldemort and sent emotions and visions from Voldemort over a mental link that I somehow got from the failed killing attempt. One of those visions showed me Sirius being held captive in the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry and him being tortured.

"Thankfully I had a two way mirror to speak with Sirius and found out that he was safe. You can imagine the mirror like a mobile phone just with visual function. But we saw our chance to get Sirius free. MOB had more or less imprisoned Sirius at his own home, all to keep him safe of course, and we had thought up some things to fake Sirius' death so everybody would stop hunting him down. So we thought, if I went to the DoM to find the prophecy that Voldemort was after, we would be able to fake Sirius' death in a Death Eater attack.

"It worked splendidly. Sirius faked being hit by a spell of his insane cousin Bellatrix Lestrange and confunded everybody onto thinking he fell through the veil of death with a bit of quick spell work. I played the distressed teenager who just lost the last person, who had played the role of a parent in my life and MOB finally came over with the true reason Voldemort attacked in 1981. Some nutcase of a seer made a prophecy that a boy, born end of July, would be able to finish of Voldemort. He would be 'marked by the dark lord as his equal and would have a power the dark lord knew not'. And that one had to kill the other. Voldemort found out about the bit about the boy born end of July could finish him off.

"That started the whole mess of my life. He took the prophecy serious and so did MOB who saw an opportunity to get a powerful weapon against his pet project that had got out of control. He was responsible for a major part in creating Voldemort. The man's true name is Tom Marvolo Riddle, a brilliant orphan who, with a bit of positive encouragement and a magical family who showed him love, would never have become dark. But no, send him back to a muggle orphanage where he hated to be. He plunged completely in his heritage of a founder of Hogwarts and began spouting the pureblood supremacy nonsense.

"Well back to my story, when Sirius successfully faked his death and I found out that my supposed best friends were traitors and were only after my money, I decided that I would come with Sirius immediately. I think you can understand that I wanted to get away from the people who were plotting my death as soon as possible. We had originally planned to wait until I got my OWL results, an equivalent test to O levels, but this had to be done quickly to escape the MOB and his cronies.

"They thought I went back to my relatives and I was sure they would keep believing that for a few days at least. With MOB making sure I was isolated from everybody, nothing would encourage them to think I wasn't there, grieving over Sirius' death. While I apparated from the platform, they thought I was just collected by my muggle relatives really fast, all thanks to Sirius hitting them with confundus charms, which confuse people into thinking different things. We quickly went to Gringotts, the wizards bank, which is run by goblins to get out of the country quickly. We moved the whole fortunes of both our families to the Tokyo branch of Gringotts. Therefore nothing MOB can do will get him the money he was after.

"I have always hidden my intelligence and only for the OWLs I stopped holding back. I needed a certain set of grades to get emancipated in the wizarding world and had worked on it since my first year at school. Nobody suspected me. If MOB had thought I was smart enough he would have made sure to sabotage me to ensure his control over me. When I lived with my relatives I would be punished if I was better at school than my absolutely stupid cousin, so I figured out how to just pass all my subjects. You can't imagine how hard it is to get bad marks that let you still pass. If Dudley had only been an average student it wouldn't have been so bad, but the guy is so stupid it hurts."

Shinichi sat there entranced in the story. He had a hard time believing in something like magic. It went against all his logical mind had ever believed. But he couldn't deny the proof Harry had shown him. And he was somehow connected to this world.

"And you are sure I am somehow connected to the … magical … world?" Shinichi asked.

"Yes. As you were able to see the dementor, you have to have at least a small amount of magic. Sirius can do a spell to check your power level."

Shinichi nodded. He wanted to know. He didn't understand but he wanted to know. He saw Simon no Sirius draw a stick from a holster at his right arm.

"_Fortis revelio_." Sirius said and a yellow light sprang from the stick to him.

Harry observed the procedure intently. What was Shinichi's level? A parchment appeared above of Shinichi's head and a quill began writing on it. Then the quill vanished and the parchment flew to Sirius who caught it and looked at it.

"Blimey, I would never have suspected something like this." He said.

"Don't let us wait, Sirius. What is Shinichi's level?" Harry asked.

"He is a wizard and quite powerful at it, but somebody has bound his magic when he was an infant so it never was recognized by the Ministry here in Japan and he never was invited to one of the magical schools." Sirius said.

"Don't tell me they have their own MOB here in Japan. This is something he would do to control a potentially powerful opponent." Harry groaned.

He just hated manipulative fools who thought they could play with the lives of others.

"I can't tell who did it, but I think he should visit a magical hospital to get his magic unbound. If it is bound when he turns seventeen it could kill him. With seventeen you undergo maturity and your magical core has one last burst of growth. Normally with a trained witch or wizard this stabilizes their powers and they find using magic coming more naturally to them. In untrained witches and wizards it makes it a feeling of peace and they have less to none bursts of accidental magic.

"They would only show any abilities in extremely dangerous situations. But with a bound core, the magic never had space to expand and get comfortable with the body. So the last burst often results in an overload that kills the wizard or witch in question. We are lucky to have found this on time. I don't want to think what could have happened."

Shinichi felt sick. Being told that he had a death sequence hanging over him was not something he liked to hear. It was too much. Magic existed, he was a wizard, somebody had interfered with his life from shortly after his birth, his best friend was a wizard too. Shinichi did the only thing he could when being overloaded with that kind and amount of information and passed out.

"That went better than I thought, pup." Sirius said, looking at Shinichi.

"He could have thrown a fit and denied everything but he is too smart to do something like that. He was confronted with losing most of what he believed to be the truth of things. For him, who has always looked at things logically it is a huge step to allow himself to believe in something fantastic like magic. But we have to find out who bound his magic and if his parents are magical or if he is a muggleborn wizard." Harry said.

"Well, I think we could send a message to Gringotts in Los Angeles which would be forwarded to the Kudos. That would probably be the best method." Sirius suggested.

"Good idea. What do you recon, will he be interested to learn to control his magic?" Harry asked.

"Probably, he seems to me like somebody who wouldn't want to waste a possibly powerful resource."

"Yeah that's right. Ok, do you want to wake him up or should I?"

"Let me do it. _Enervate_." Sirius said.

Shinichi shifted and slowly opened his eyes. Seeing Sirius' wand he knew immediately that he hadn't dreamt this. He sat up and looked at Harry.

"It is true. This will take some time getting used to. What I wanted to ask. I figure if there is somebody who tries to use you in England you are on the run and are using fake names. Would you tell me your real ones?" He asked.

"Observant as always, Shinichi. You are right. But you have to swear not to tell anybody our real names Anonymity is a big part of our security measures." Harry said.

"Of course. I swear I won't tell anybody your true names without your permission."

"Well, my true name is Sirius Black. I am the head of the noble and most ancient house of Black, a pureblood family who goes back many centuries. And I was one of the most wanted men in Britain thanks to a certain MOB, a power-hungry but now dead politician and a fool who plays Minister."

"I have heard that name. Some years ago there were reports in the newspapers about an escaped mass murderer in Britain. But it soon vanished from the news as it was not an immediate threat to Japan." Shinichi remembered.

"Yes, the whole story is a lie, set-up by the Ministry of Magic which informed the Prime Minister of the situation. And as I never even got a trial I was not legally convicted. But the fool of a Minister put out an order that I was to be given the dementor's kiss on sight. So it was impossible for me to prove my innocence. But ironically I have been cleared of all charges after my faked death. So when we return to Britain I will be a free man again."

"My true name is Harry Potter. I am the head of the noble and most ancient house of Potter but I am a halfblood. My mother was a muggleborn witch, the smartest and most powerful one of her generation. I grew up with her muggle family, which hated me and I have only experienced true freedom the last months here in Japan. In Britain I was always harassed by the press either for being the famous defeater of Voldemort as an infant or as an attention seeking liar. And because of my scar on my forehead everybody was able to identify me. I have hidden it with muggle make up."

"Okay, how fast can we get the blocks on my magic removed? As you can probably understand I don't want to die because somebody fucked up my life." Shinichi asked.

"Oh yes, I can understand. Well, we can go now. It's midday and the Tokyo Clinic has opened all day." Harry said.

* * *

><p>The three went to catch an underground to get to the Toriya district of Tokyo where the Clinic was located. Shinichi was led through the disguised entrance, an antiques store, and then had to stop himself from staring around. The Clinic was modern but obviously magical. Many patients sat in a waiting area with different signs of problems. A man held his son who had grown a goat head, a woman was spitting blobs of blue slime while coughing, a girl was bound by her own hair and a man had flaming hair.<p>

"Are those kinds of symptoms normal?" Shinichi asked.

"No, something has to have gone wrong while magic was done, in the case of the child it was probably accidental magic. Healing is not a common branch witches and wizards study so they have to depend on healers for the more complicated remedies." Sirius explained.

Harry reached the reception desk.

"Hello, we need to see a healer in a case of magic binding that has been in place for at least sixteen years and has only been detected today." he explained.

The witch at the desk looked at him appalled. Then she seemed to recognize him.

"Of course, Mr Black, I will alert Master Healer Takanabe at once. He is the specialist in this area. Name of the patient?"

"Shinichi Kudo." Shinichi answered the question as he stood now next to Harry.

The witch was obviously a fan of the detective duo as she needed a few moments to get herself sorted and sent a memo to the Healer.

"Please go to room 21A at the second floor. Master Healer Takanabe will meet you there." She said.

"Thanks." Harry said and led Shinichi to the stairs.

"How do you know your way around so well, Harry?" Shinichi asked.

"I am training here every Saturday in basic healing. I don't want to be in a dire situation and then be unable to heal myself or others in need. I also kinda have to come here to let them take care of my training injuries from martial arts training." Harry explained.

They reached the room and Shinichi wanted to wait in front of the room but Harry and Sirius told him to get inside.

"This is a bit different than a normal hospital." Sirius explained.

"The waiting area downstairs is for people who have to wait for their appointment or until a healer is free. When you are told to get to a certain room, they mean you are to go inside. That way the healer can manage his schedule easier. The just apparate from room to room and do diagnoses of the patients."

As if to prove Sirius words the healer appeared in the room with a soft pop.

"Hello, Mr Kudo. Ah I see you have brought some moral support. I am Master Healer Takanabe. I heard you have found an old block on your magic only today?" The healer asked.

Healer Takanabe was a man around forty-five years with black hair that lay flat at his head and reached down to his shoulders in a ponytail. He had brown eyes and was a bit on the chubby side.

"Yes, Healer Takanabe. This morning, when we were about to go to school, suddenly the air around became really cold. I soon determined the reason to be a dementor and took charge to get all the non-magical students inside. But Shinichi was able to see the dementor and ran away after seeing it was only following him. We don't know why somebody would send a dementor after him, as he should only have non magical enemies. Well, after the students were on their way inside, I ran after Shinichi as I was the only one around able to defeat a dementor." Harry explained.

"I used the patronus charm to defeat the dementor and brought Shinichi to my home with an emergency portkey my uncle gave me. There my uncle did a test on Shinichi to find out if he was a wizard or a squib as both can see dementors. It turned out that Shinichi is a wizard and that his magic was bound when he was an infant."

"I see, you were right to come here immediately. Mr Kudo, when will you turn seventeen?" Healer Takanabe asked.

"May 4th this year." Shinichi answered.

"So there are only three months left. Thankfully this has come out now or your chances for survival wouldn't have been good. Well, let me see what needs to be done." He said.

Healer Takanabe waved his wand up and down Shinichi's body and mumbled to himself. Then his face screwed up.

"This is curious. I think I have seen this magical signature before, but it would be really improbable. I mean he wasn't in Japan at that time." He said.

"Who do you think was it?" Harry asked.

"This looks like the signature of Albus Dumbledore. But I know he was in England at the time the block was placed. It was around the time the dark lord Voldemort was terrorizing everybody there the first time. I would estimate about a year before he was defeated by a baby boy, Harry Potter, which means when you were six or seven months old."

Harry began cursing in English about damn MOBs, interfering in other people's lives when they have no right to do so, cursed prophecies, Voldemort and many things more. The healer was stunned at the sudden flood of curses the young man was shouting.

"What is the matter?" He asked Sirius, who had his head in his hands.

"Healer Takanabe, does everything we say in this room fall under patient confidentiality?" He asked instead of answering.

"Yes, of course and there is a silencing charm at the room that activates as soon as a healer goes into a room. Why?"

"Well, Harry here had a lot of experience with the manipulations of Albus Dumbledore. MOB is a short form of manipulating old bastard, which is what Harry has taken to calling Dumbledore. His whole life has been set up by the man. First his parents were killed by Voldemort when they tried to protect him as Harry is subject to a prophecy that says he has to kill Voldemort or is to be killed by him. His true name is Harry James Potter but as he found out Dumbledore has no interest that Harry survives his last fight with Voldemort, only that he kills him at the same time. Then the bastard wanted to get Harry's fortune.

"I think there could have been more to the prophecy than Dumbledore showed Harry after he believed that I had died, as I am Harry's godfather and was a constant thorn in his plans. Harry has grown up in an abusive home with his mother's sister and her family who hated magic, which was what MOB, I will call him that as it is shorter, wanted. A submissive weapon which would look up to him, but Harry is smarter than he let on.

"Nobody knew that he learned more than he showed in his tests. The only exception were his OWLs as he needed certain grades to get emancipated to escape the hell of his so called home. I staged my own death about half a year ago and fled with Harry to Japan with a stop in China to file his emancipation papers so nobody could track us down. MOB has led everybody in Britain to believe that he is the leader of the light but he only works for his own goals."

In the background Harry was still cursing changing to promises to kill both Voldy and MOB.

"I think I understand. So if Dumbledore bound Mr Kudo's magic he might have a role to play that was a problem for Dumbledore." Takanabe said.

Sirius nodded and Shinichi frowned. He hated being used. And those who played with his life were open to be taken down. No mercy. He would help Harry to take down Dumbledore and if it was the last thing he did.

"I think we should take away the block now. It will probably be painful but there is no other way as it has been in place for too long."

Shinichi nodded and Harry stopped cursing for the time being and began to think. Sirius was sure he would come up with another crazy idea. He knew that face. Healer Takanabe told Shinichi to lie down and began with his spell. A golden light shot into Shinichi and he began to shake and scream immediately.

This was pain worse than anything he had ever felt. Nothing could compare with being torn apart from the inside. Shinichi couldn't stop himself from screaming. Thankfully for him it was over after three minutes. He only noticed being given something fluid and swallowing it before the pain began to lessen.

"Healer Takanabe, how does the breaking of the block compare to the cruciatus curse?" Harry asked soberly.

"It is very similar except that the breaking of the block doesn't have negative after effects. But he will be a bit disoriented for the next days. His body has to get used to having his magic available again. I fear he will never truly reach his potential as the fixation will take place in only three months' time. He would have been really powerful, I can tell from his power outburst when the block broke but he would need at least a year of intense magical training to get to that point."

"Damn it, we don't have that much time at our hands even if we had a time turner." Harry cursed.

"We can't change it, Harry. I will take the time I can get and make most of it." Shinichi said.

"We don't have much choice in the matter." Sirius agreed. "I will get the materials to give Shinichi a crash course to use as much time as possible for his training. Healer Takanabe, when can Shinichi start training?"

"It will take some time for his body to get used to his magic. My guess is two weeks."

"Not as soon as I had hoped but it will have to do. I think you should get as much of your normal schoolwork done as you can Shinichi because you won't have that much time to do it afterwards." Harry suggested.

After thinking for a bit he added another question for the healer.

"Can we take Shinichi to get his wand now or do we have to wait until he is able to begin using magic?"

"It would be better to wait. Until the magic has settled the bonding with the wand would be interfered with and he wouldn't get good results with a wand that chose him during a time his magic was acting up."

They nodded and Shinichi was allowed to leave the clinic while promising that he would stay with Harry and Sirius who would be able to take care of any bouts of accidental magic.

* * *

><p><strong>How did you like that I made Shinichi another victim of Dumbledore? I thought it was kind of logical that Shinichi had to be a wizard withhis penchant of stumbling over murder cases. But the only way I could think of was to have his powers sealed early in his life.<strong>

**Until next time. **


	8. Great Detective Chibi Version

**THis is the long overdue update. I hope you like it. As always I only own the idea for this story.**

* * *

><p><strong>Great Detective Chibi Version<strong>

Hermione and Ron sat in the Gryffindor common room, working on an essay for Professor McGonagall. Hermione was still in a bad mood. She had been really pleased with her OWL results at first. She had got O's in all her subjects but Defence and had been sure to have got the top spot of all the students taking the exams. But then she had found out from Dumbledore that she hadn't aced even one exam. No, Harry of all people had taken the top spot from her and aced all exams except Herbology where, as predicted, Neville had been the best student.

How could they have not seen Harry's intelligence? How had he managed to deceive them? He had never shown any real talent except for Defence like he should according to the headmaster's master plan. She just couldn't understand it. And Ron was no help in the matter. He couldn't remember any signs that Harry was learning in secret. He had not shown signs of heightened tiredness from learning at night, no sudden increase in school work, no extra visits to the library with the exception of their fourth year and the Triwizard Tournament. But that had been intentional on their part as they couldn't afford for Harry to be killed in the Tournament.

The headmaster had not been pleased that they hadn't found out about this before it was too late. Now Harry had got his emancipation via China and had disappeared completely. Nobody knew where he had gone to. They had had a horrible fallout with Neville and Luna who had told them in no uncertain terms what they thought of traitors. Neville had really changed over the last year under Harry's tutelage and was now the new leader in Gryffindor house with a vast support in Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff.

Neville was one of the few people Harry still had contact with. He knew that Harry was overseas, but not his specific location. Neville understood the reason why and wasn't mad at Harry for it. He wished his friend the best and hoped he could enjoy his life until he returned to finally deal with Voldemort. He shared the letters Harry sent via Gringotts with Luna, who had proven to be absolutely loyal to the boy who had been the first person to reach out to her in friendship. Dumbledore had tried to find out Harry's location through Neville and Luna, but had to stop with Neville informing his Gran of Dumbledore's behaviour. And even Dumbledore couldn't afford to anger Augusta Longbottom.

Ron was mourning their decreased performance at Quidditch without Harry playing seeker. They had found out that McGonagall had planned on making Harry new Quidditch captain and now with Katie Bell refusing to take the post due to her NEWTs this year the position had gone to Ron as the only remaining member from last year. But that had only lasted a month, meaning until Neville had informed the rest of their house, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, about his and Hermione's spying for the headmaster. The whole Quidditch team had gone to McGonagall and told her that they wouldn't play under a traitor. If Ron Weasley was kept as captain of the team the rest would quit. McGonagall, to at least keep a Quidditch team for the Cup, had taken away his captaincy.

He and Ginny hadn't been allowed back into the team either. Katie had grudgingly agreed to help putting together the new team out of loyalty to her house. She was made nominal captain, but the training was done by the new team in team effort. They had gone and looked up training strategies from books in the library and Katie explained to them the things Oliver and Angelina had done to train the team. Katie had also written pleas for help to Oliver and Angelina and informed them of the situation. Oliver had even sent her his training plans from the past. With them the new Gryffindor team was set to at least try to do their best.

Additionally the twins had cut all bonds with their family. They had declared they were with Harry and greedy bastards didn't deserve their support.

Hermione, Ginny and Ron had been shunned by most of their peers. The Hufflepuffs were angry how they could have betrayed one of their own. Loyalty was a big trait among the badgers after all. The Ravenclaws couldn't understand how they could be as stupid as to get on the bad side of an heir of an ancient and noble house, after all it was common knowledge that the house of Potter was extremely important in the wizarding world. The Slytherins just didn't like them on principal, after all they were a mudblood and blood traitors. And Draco relished in rubbing their failures under their noses.

Voldemort was increasing the number of his attacks and more and more students were pulled out of Hogwarts. The parents just didn't think that Dumbledore had everything under control anymore. Since Rita had taken to demolish Dumbledore's reputation, curiously she had given up on painting Harry in a bad light after one well worded letter from Harry's lawyer, the numbers of those who doubted Dumbledore's ability to win the war increased dramatically.

It was all just Harry's fault. If the damn boy had just done what he was supposed to do, nothing of this would have happened. But now all they could do was try to find him and get him back under control.

If she only knew that this would never happen.

* * *

><p>Harry sat at the kitchen table in his home with Shinichi and went over magical theory with him. It was Saturday morning and Shinichi would meet with Ran in two hours to take her to Tropical Land while Harry had his weekly appointment at the hospital for his training in healing. In the past one and a half weeks since Shinichi got his magic unblocked they had worked on their normal lessons up to the topics which would be on the end of year tests and they found they would be able to pass them without problems, so they started to help Shinichi understand more about magic.<p>

They had found out from a letter Shinichi's parents had sent them back via Gringotts that Yukiko was a witch and Yusaku a squib. They had thought Shinichi to be a squib like his father and therefore never told him about magic. Both had been really mad that somebody had tried to murder their son like this and were really grateful to Harry and Sirius for saving Shinichi's life. They gave their permission for Shinichi to learn everything he could and that they would pay for all the expenses. A letter to the Tokyo branch of Gringotts authorized Shinichi to access Yukiko's vault.

"Shinichi, stop fidgeting. Your date with Ran will go well." Harry said assuringly.

Shinichi didn't even try to deny his nervousness. Harry was too smart to be deceived.

"But what if it turns into an embarrassing disaster? I don't know what to do then."

"Just be yourself, but please try to keep the topic of mystery novels at a minimum. This is a date and Ran isn't into mystery like you are. You have to try and find something you both enjoy talking about. You can talk about it but not solely about it. Believe me I know what I talk about. I had this one disaster of a date last year on Valentine's Day and after we depleted the topic of Quidditch I never knew what to talk about with Cho. You at least know some things Ran is interested in."

"Okay I will do my best. But please no spying on us." Shinichi said.

"I promise. I wouldn't like to be observed during a date either. But I will grill you afterwards." He said grinning.

Shinichi sighed. This would be the best he could get from Harry.

* * *

><p>That evening Harry and Sirius sat in front of the TV and listened to the news.<p>

"_Today there was a murder at Tropical Land's famous mystery roller coaster. A man was beheaded during the ride. With the help of high school detective Shinichi Kudo, the police once again was able to solve the case. The culprit, the ex-girlfriend of the victim, used a devious trick to exchange the string of her necklace against a piano wire. The rest was a bit of artistic body movement at high-speed in the tunnel of the roller coaster. We are once again proud of one of our resident high school detectives."_

"Geese, Shinichi can't even go on a date without being involved in a murder case." Harry said.

"Well, I think his chances to get a kiss from Ran were pretty low after that." Sirius observed.

"Probably. Too bad, he will have to wait for the next opportunity."

That moment the telephone rang. Sirius went to answer it.

"Simon Black speaking." He said after taking it up. "Yes, I understand we will come at once. Thank you, Professor." Sirius said and dropped the line.

"What happened, Sirius?" Harry asked.

"It was the professor. He said that something happened with Shinichi. What do you think this is about?" Sirius asked.

"I don't know but we should be on guard. This could be a trick of MOB or Voldy. I don't know how they could have found us but better safe than sorry." He said.

Sirius nodded and they took Sirius' car to drive to the professor's house. Arriving there they were confronted with the surreal experience of seeing a miniature version of Shinichi with glasses, who desperately tried to escape Ran who obviously tried to cuddle with him.

"Harry!" The dwarf happily cried, running to the older boy.

Harry, suspecting something was going on went down to one knee and let himself be hugged by the child.

"Please just play along, Harry. I don't know how I shrunk, but you and Sirius were the only persons I could think of to be able to help me. I will explain everything later when Ran isn't around."

"Okay what name do you go by?" Harry asked in a low voice.

"Conan Edogawa. The professor has asked Ran to take me in as my parents were involved into an accident. As her father is a detective he hoped that in time a case with those who did this to me would come up and I could find clues. He doesn't know about magic so that would normally be the best course of action for me. I think I could say that you are my older cousin on my mother's side."

"Alright, we will do it that way. I will come by after you got settled in at Mori's."

"Conan, do you know Harry?" Ran asked.

"Yes, he does, Ran. Conan is my second cousin on my mother's side. Uncle Simon is my father's brother while our mothers were cousins. I didn't know he was in Tokyo until now. Last time I saw him was one and a half year ago. What happened professor?" Harry asked perfectly playing his part, giving Sirius meaningful looks to just go with it.

"Well, Conan's parents, distant relatives of mine, had this car accident. Conan just got this wound on his head, but his parents have to stay at the hospital for some time. I am not really suited to take him in so I asked Ran if she and her father would look after him."

"If you would do this, Ran, it would be a real help." Sirius said.

"I am going on a business trip next week and won't be around for some time so I won't be able to take him in and Harry alone is not capable to look after a small child I fear. But I am sure he will be helping you with taking care of Conan. If your father has any fears about money, I will take care of the extra costs he will produce for your family."

"Of course. I will be happy to take care of him for a while. I always wanted a little brother. I just have to ask my father but I don't think he will be against it. It is just for some time after all." She said.

"Thank you, Ran. This helps a lot. Harry, why don't you accompany Ran and Conan on their way home? I will wait for you at home to discuss things for my business trip."

"Sure, Uncle Simon. Until later." Harry answered and went with Shinichi, correction, Conan and Ran back to Ran's home.

* * *

><p>Harry tried to find out more about the day from Ran and she told him about the case Shinichi had solved and how he disappeared suddenly. Harry shot Shinichi a harsh look. He had thought that Shinichi had learned to practice basic security measures. This sounded like one of his not completely thought out plans. Shinichi had the good measure to look ashamed.<p>

When they reached the detective agency of Ran's father, they were bowled over by the supposed detective. He told them he had a case with a girl that had been kidnapped by a man in black. Shinichi, who thought of the men in black that had poisoned him, managed to get them all into the cab Kogoro Mori, Ran's father, had called. It was a bit tense when Ran introduced Harry and Conan to her father. But in light of the case it was postponed.

They reached the mansion of Kogoro's new client and the butler told them the story of the kidnapping. Harry thought the whole thing was fishy, why would a criminal demand closing of the client's business and money? He had to interfere with Shinichi getting too suspicious with his questions but he could understand him. It was frustrating to see the incompetent Mori overlooking clues to solving the case especially when Shinichi walked towards the tree, the kidnapper used to escape with the girl and three big dogs came forth barking loudly.

The whole situation was illogical. Why would somebody kidnap the girl at home and not on her way home from school? That would have been a lot easier. He could see that Shinichi was thinking the same. Harry gave Shinichi a discrete sign that he had the solution and to leave everything to him. During the following questioning they got to know more details and finally Harry had enough.

"Okay, why don't we stop this farce and you tell us where you took the girl, Mr Aso?" He asked the butler who had been the only witness of the kidnapping.

Everybody looked at Harry with wide eyes.

"What are you talking about boy? And who are you?" Mr Tani the client asked.

"My name is Harrison Black, I am a detective. And what I am speaking about is that the whole description of the kidnapping is a bunch of rubbish. Detective Mori, did you notice what happened when Conan looked at the tree the kidnapper used to flee from the garden?"

Mori thought and then he had it.

"There were the dogs that started barking loudly. I was annoyed because it disturbed the questioning. What does the boy's behaviour have to do with the case?"

"Mr Tani, don't the dogs bark at everybody they don't know?" Harry asked already knowing the answer.

"Yes, they do."

"Then it is impossible that there were no other sounds except Mr Aso's shouts that your daughter had been kidnapped. Only those who were known to the dogs would have even been able to get past them. So the only possible way that the dogs didn't bark was that he is the kidnapper of your daughter. You are caught Mr Aso. Tell us where the girl is." Harry demanded.

Shinichi was glad that Harry had solved the case this fast. Now they could get to the girl and bring her home. Then the phone was brought to Mr Tani when the butler told them that the girl was in a hotel. The case became just weirder. The man who had demanded the money was calling and he could prove that he had the girl. She managed to give them a clue where she was but the kidnapper soon stopped her from telling them more.

"Harry, that is a serious problem. We have to find her as fast as possible." Shinichi said.

"I know. There are a lot of schools around here. We will have to check every single one if you can see a big chimney. I take west and south, you take east and north. Do you have your handy?" Harry asked.

"Yes, I have. I will take the dog to get around faster. Shrinking took a lot of my stamina. Whoever finds the girl first calls the other one." Shinichi agreed.

"And don't go in there alone except you have no other choice. You are a child. You don't have your previous abilities. Don't be hasty. If you find her wait for me or arrange a distraction."

"Alright, no reason for you to get overbearing."

"Do I have to remind you, that you got yourself in a severe situation not me? We will discuss this later, now we have to find the girl." Harry stopped the upcoming argument.

* * *

><p>They went and split up to look for the big chimneys and schools. It took them some time to check all the schools. There were five schools from where you could see a chimney. Shinichi had two in his area, Harry the other three. All were failures. Then Shinichi saw a skyscraper and got an idea. He led the dog he was riding to a position from where he could see the side perspective of the building and it looked just like a chimney. He now knew which school the girl was kept at. He called Harry.<p>

"Yes." Harry said answering the call.

"I know where she is. It's the Futatsubashi middle school. It's not a chimney Akiko saw, it's a skyscraper from side perspective. Come there as soon as you can, I will try to find her and wait for you." Shinichi said.

"Alright, I will be there soon." Harry ended the call and Shinichi and the dog went to the school.

The kidnapper just had a call with Mr Tani while Akiko was unable to speak due to a tape that was glued over her mouth.

"Yes, I will let her go as soon as I have the money." He just told the man and then ended the call as Mr Tani asked to speak with Akiko again.

"So, the deal is perfect. Now you have to die. You have seen my face after all and I can't let you tell the police how I look, can I?" He asked the frightened girl.

"Not so fast!" He heard a voice.

"W-Who is there? Where are you?" He asked the knife in his hand ready to strike.

Shinichi answered from the ground and the dog attacked the kidnapper. Shinichi went to free the girl, hoping the dog would be enough to stop the kidnapper or that Harry would be here soon. He had listened to Harry. He knew he had been stupid to go after the men in black alone. He had a partner he could trust and just the situation called for fast action. He couldn't let the girl be killed. He went over to the girl and took away the tape over her mouth.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"Later, I have to get you out of here fast." Shinichi said.

Then the dog flew towards them and landed in front of them beaten badly.

"J-Jumbo." The girl said afraid.

Shinichi cursed in his mind. This was not looking good. What could he do? He tried to shoot a ball at the man, but his power was too low to have any effect. The only thing he could do now was dodging the bat the man used to beat up the dog. But in the end he took a hit. Just as the man was about to really begin the beating he flew across the room into the wall.

"Sorry I am late, Conan, I came as fast as I could." Harry said.

Shinichi was relieved. Harry was adept in martial arts. He would be able to secure the culprit. What followed was Harry using superior abilities in fighting to make sure the culprit was knocked out. Shinichi in the meantime freed the girl from the ropes binding her.

"Everything is okay now. My cousin will make sure the man won't be able to hurt us again." He said assuring the girl.

"Who are you two?" She asked impressed with the two boys.

"I am Conan Edogawa and that is my cousin Harrison Black. We are detectives." He said.

When Harry was binding the man with ropes, Mr Tani, Kogoro Mori and Ran came running into the storage hall following the bruised dog.

"Dad!" Akiko shouted happily.

"Akiko!" Her father cried relieved. "You were right, Mori, by following Jumbo we found her."

Then he looked around and saw Harry finishing binding the kidnapper.

"How can I thank you? You saved my daughter. Are you Mori's assistant?" He asked.

"No I am a high school detective. I am a classmate of Ran Mori and I was accompanying her on her way home when her father told us about this case. So I thought it would be helpful to come along as I wanted to discuss some things with detective Mori about my cousin Conan."

"Wait, you said your name is Harrison Black? Like 'The Hawk'?" Mr Tani asked.

"Yes, that is the name I am known under." Harry admitted.

"I am pleased to meet you. Detective Mori, I am very happy that you thought to bring along another bright mind to find my daughter as fast as possible. I will show my gratitude in the next days with a well-deserved pay check. Now we just have to sort out the last thing about this kidnapping. We have your accomplice, Aso."

"I, his accomplice? I saw the girl in the hotel lobby and snatched her. I would never work with such an incompetent fool like that." The kidnapper said.

The girl and the butler then cleared all the misunderstandings that Akiko just wanted her father to spend more time with her and that she persuaded the butler to help her with her plan to kidnap herself. Everything was well after this. The only thing to do was getting Mori to agree to look after Conan for a while.

"So what was this you wanted to talk to me about?" He asked Harry.

"Well, Conan is my second cousin and his parents had a car accident and are at the hospital. Normally my uncle Simon and I would take him in until they get out, but my uncle has to leave Japan in one week because of his job and will be away for at least a month. I am not capable to look after a six year old boy alone. I just manage to look after myself and only by eating outside or making instant food. That's not a good environment for a little boy, so Professor Agasa, who is also a distant relative but as over his head with a child as I am, asked Ran if she could look after him until his parents get out of hospital. My uncle would pay for any costs Conan would bring up. We are just unfortunate that this happened now."

"Hm, as long as he behaves and the costs are matched he can stay. He helped with this case and perhaps he is something like a good luck charm. It was easy to find the culprit." Mori said laughing.

Harry, knowing that Mori was overestimating himself just agreed and thanked him for allowing Conan to stay. They would see what to do in a month's time. And he needed to find out what really happened to Shinichi. But for now they had a good position to work with.


	9. Finding Horcruxes

**Hi, I'm back. Did you miss me? I finally have a new computer and got my internet back to working. :)**

**So now I am going to continue my stories, so look forward to many updates of my stories in the next few days.**

**As Always I don't own Harry Potter or Detective Conan. Now happy reading.**

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><p><strong>Finding Horcruxes<strong>

Sirius was at number 12, Grimmauld Place. He had agreed with Harry that they needed to begin destroying the horcruxes they knew about, otherwise all the training Harry did would be useless. While Shinichi was really annoyed about his new age, it was a blessing in disguise. Now they had the time they needed to train him properly in his magic. Harry would start it while he was in Britain and then they would both continue it when he got back. Thankfully Shinichi only needed to get proficient in the wanded subjects to gain the most benefits of his maturity when it finally happened.

He could wait to get more in depth knowledge of the subjects like Herbology, Potions, Runes, Arithmancy and so on until a later date. Harry and Shinichi suspected that Shinichi was also subject to the prophecy. Otherwise it wouldn't make sense for Dumbledore to bind his magic. He couldn't even have known about Shinichi as his parents weren't that well-known in the wizarding world. Yukiko may be a witch, but she had concentrated on being an actress before she had had Shinichi, so the political contacts Dumbledore may have had in Japan wouldn't have told him about her. She lived more in the muggle world anyway. He parents were a muggleborn wizard and a muggle woman. And Yusaku was a mystery writer. While Dumbledore kept an eye on the muggle world in Great Britain to try and keep up to date with Voldemort's plans, it would be just too much if he did it for other countries as well.

Sirius had decided to start his hunt for the horcruxes at Hogwarts. He knew from Harry how to get into the Room of Requirement. It was the only room that matched the description of the horcrux's hiding place. Using his knowledge of the secret passages at the castle and his animagus form, he would go in, destroy the diadem with a vial of basilisk venom he had got from an old apothecary in Kyoto and go out during one night of the new moon. Nobody was to see him and a moonless night was best to not be seen. No need to alert MOB of his survival until it was too late for him to do anything.

Additionally to his job of destroying the horcrux he wanted to find out more about the current situation in Britain, which members of the Order of the Phoenix would possibly see the truth about Dumbledore and which were just dumb sheep and what the Ministry did to catch Voldy's servants. Information was crucial for Harry's success and while having the twins as informants was great, Sirius could find out more with him being unsuspicious around people in his dog form. He looked around the dark and dusty house only to find Kreacher mumbling about failing his master Regulus. This made Sirius suspicious. Why would Kreacher have failed Regulus? His brother had died years ago even before Harry had stopped Voldy.

He decided to listen and not make himself known to the elf he still disliked. While he had intended to fake his death, the elf had done everything to help Voldemort's supporters with telling secrets to Narcissa. What he got from the insane ranting of the elf was that he couldn't destroy a locket. A locket Regulus wanted him to destroy. Sirius decided to look for the locket. Kreacher had it in his cupboard. So while the elf was still on the first floor, Sirius went into the kitchen and looked in the cupboard for the locket and found it easily. When he saw it, he paused. He recognized the sign on the front at once. It was the mark of Slytherin.

This was just too easy. He had one of the horcruxes without having to go looking for it. From what Harry had remembered of his vision, this was the locket that was hidden in a cave full of inferi. Well, he wouldn't complain about having luck for once in his life. He wrapped the horcrux in a layer of acromantula silk, the only material able to block the influence of a horcrux on a person and left the house without looking back. He would destroy the horcrux when he was sure that he was alone and far away from all possible dangers to the plan. Voldemort couldn't find out that they were targeting his horcruxes or he would take away those they hadn't got until then.

And Dumbledore would mess things up. He would try to gain an advantage from the horcruxes. No, he would do it secretly. He concentrated and apparated to Hogsmeade. It was just before the shops would close up for the night and he managed to sneak into the cellar of Honeydukes, the sweet shop, by using a disillusionment charm. He opened the concealed trap door and went through the long tunnel leading up to the statue of the humpbacked witch. Casting a _homenum revelio _to be sure that nobody was around he opened the back with the password and crept into the floor. He turned into his animagus form and kept to the shadows while going up to the seventh floor to the portrait of the barmy wizard trying to teach trolls ballet.

Sirius turned back to his human form and paced three times thinking he needed to find the hiding place of the horcrux. After the third time the door to the Room of Requirement appeared and Sirius quickly went inside. What he found was more than he expected. There were so many things inside the room. How he wished he had more time to see if there was anything useful for him and Harry. Sirius then thought hard about a map which showed the way to the horcrux and got it right away. Harry had explained the workings of the room really well. Sirius was a bit put out that the marauders didn't find this room during their time at Hogwarts but he couldn't change the past.

Sirius followed the instructions and after five minutes he reached a bust of some old wizard which had a wig and the lost diadem of Ravenclaw on its head. Sirius took out the locket and the vial with basilisk venom and put the diadem next to the locket. He first dropped some venom on the diadem; then the locket got the same treatment. Both horcruxes began shrieking until a black cloud got up from them and disappeared. Both heirlooms of the founders were irreparably destroyed. Sirius decided to leave them hidden in the room as they couldn't do any damage anymore. He then turned to leave when he saw a broken vanishing cabinet.

It became suddenly clear to him what the mentioning of a cabinet in Harry's dream had meant. While he didn't like Dumbledore and couldn't care less if the man died, he couldn't accept students being put in danger from Death Eaters. So he did the only thing he could and shot several powerful blasting hexes at the cabinet and reduced it to dust. Now it would be impossible for anybody to use it again. Deciding he had spent enough time at Hogwarts and not wanting to be found, he left the room and transformed into his animagus form. Leaving the same way he had come, nobody ever knew he was there.

Only the furious screams Draco Malfoy let loose in the Room of Requirement two days later when he was going to continue to repair the vanishing cabinet, ever told that somebody had visited the room of hidden things.

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><p>Shinichi was bored out of his mind. Really, why did he have to go to primary school again? Why couldn't he just study at home and become better at magic? On the one hand he was glad to have enough time to learn to use his magic now; on the other hand he had been so close to form a boyfriend – girlfriend relationship with Ran. He also hated being helpless. While the professor had been able to get him some tools that were useful, like the voice transformer bow tie and his power kick boots, he was still a child that no adult was taking serious when he pointed out something.<p>

And it was aggravating to see Mori making a fool out of himself. The man just couldn't stop shouting conclusions without thinking things through. Worst, Ran was really missing him. He had called her with his old voice but speaking on the phone could only do so much for her. Harry had taken a sample of his blood to analyse the effects of the poison he had been forced to take. He really hoped that they could find an antidote to the poison soon. He hated being a child again. He would use the advantage of learning his magic but he would look for any clues to find those men in black and he would make sure to have them locked up in prison for life.

An interesting little side effect of his new age were the attempts of Harry's neighbour's daughter Ayumi and her friends Genta and Mitsuhiko trying to involve him in their little adventures. They had been a little annoying but he had accompanied them to the supposed ghost house Ayumi had found, only to be involved in a new case. A mother was imprisoning her son to protect him from the persecution of the law for killing his father in anger. And after that he had to deterre the kids from investigating his own house.

Finally the liberating bell rang and Shinichi started his way home. Or better said his way to Harry's home. They would continue his magical training. Today they had planned to do Transfiguration. He could see the uses for this branch of magic in his chosen profession even if he would have to be careful so no non-magical people would find out he could do magic. Thankfully he wasn't registered as a wizard in Japan yet, so nobody would find out about his involuntary deaging. And thanks to the wards nobody would detect underage magic.

He let himself in with the key Harry and Sirius had given him before Sirius had travelled to Britain to look for those horcruxes Voldemort had made to gain immortality. If his own life hadn't been turned upside down from one moment to another, he would have had problems understanding how Harry could cope with his life. It was just insane to believe that one teenager alone would be able to beat an experienced ruthless wizard. Not to mention said maniacs little group of crazy minions. He was so glad that Japanese wizards and witches seemed to have logical abilities. Otherwise he would go mad. He couldn't imagine living among people that had not an ounce of logic and were incapable of admitting that things were easier to understand with some logic. While magic wasn't always logical, a lot of it was. Magic followed principles that if you understood them allowed you to grasp advanced concepts easily.

Harry wasn't there yet and Shinichi set down his backpack and went to the shelves where the magic books were kept. Sirius had transfigured the covers of the books to appear like fiction novels so nobody who came inside the apartment, would become suspicious. He took the first year book for Transfiguration and began preparing the materials they would use today. He had found out that Transfiguration was a complex area of magic which required a thorough understanding of the theory before you could become good at the practical part. He could do the basic exercises like transfiguring a matchstick into a needle, a piece of paper into a towel of the same size and some other things.

Harry had explained that they would do another approach than Hogwarts did and leave the annoying essays be because they didn't know how much time they had until they found an antidote to the poison. They were halfway through the first year books Harry had kept in only three weeks. They practiced every day after school except for Wednesday and Fridays because on Wednesdays Harry had school until late in the evening and on Fridays Ran insisted on having Shinichi home early for dinner because her father usually went out to play mah-jong on those days.

It was a major advantage that Harry had inherited his father's massive talent with Transfiguration. He had explained that while he should get a thorough understanding of the basics of theory there was the core of all Transfigurations he should get down first; visualisation. If you properly imagined how the transformation from one thing into another would go, you had an easier time mastering Transfiguration. So Shinichi would take parts of the texts home, disguised as papers from his elementary school classes to anybody but those keyed into the charm, and study them in the evenings; doing the homework for school did only take fifteen minutes at most each day after all and Shinichi simply couldn't pretend doing homework with nothing real to do during the time. Even Ran would notice that.

It was something Harry had never really understood with the Hogwarts approach. His teacher, Professor McGonagall, had never explained that they had to really see the object they wanted to transfigure the starting object into inside their minds. Harry, always doing things his instinctive way, had found out the method early on. During lessons he stayed unobtrusive, but during his training sessions two times a week at night, he tried what method worked best for him. Once he had figured it out, he could do spells easily. Shinichi had noticed his spellwork had become much better after he got it to work for him.

Shinichi also joined Harry in his martial arts training as physical training increased the power of a person's magical core. A stronger body was able to handle more magic and they felt that they needed every advantage they could get. He still liked playing football more, but it was simply boring to play with the children that were his current age. He was too good for them. And the older teens wouldn't let a child play with them and his bod didn't have the strength for it. Harry arrived ten minutes later and they started the next part of their lessons, beetles into buttons.

The afternoon ran by fast and they got not only the beetle into button exercise down but also started with changing objects that were not the same size. It was slightly more difficult but as Shinichi was really good at grasping the theory part with Harry's help, they got it down in the end. Harry decided to bring Shinichi home because it would look suspicious if a six year old boy ran around Tokyo all on his own. They didn't want to have the police get interested in them. Shinichi needed to stay under the radar to not gain the attention of the men in black.

They eventually reached the detective agency and Harry said goodbye to Shinichi and told him he would come over the day after tomorrow at ten as it was a Saturday. Shinichi agreed and went upstairs to meet Ran.

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><p>When Harry came to get Shinichi Saturday morning things didn't go like he had planned. Ran was in a frenzy because one of her father's old clients, a girl called Masami Hirota, had seemingly disappeared and now she wanted to find the girl. Mori had been given the job to find the girl's father and with the help of one of Conan's childlike hints and Ran's deductions they had found the man, who was obviously stunned to see his daughter again. Harry was soon briefed on the details by Shinichi and they set out to find Masami with the radar glasses the Professor had given Shinichi for his newest gimmick. Shinichi had accidentally placed a sticking button on her watch so it should have been easy to find her.<p>

They found not her but a huge man in a pachinko hall and Harry and Shinichi decided to investigate some more. Everything became fishier when it seemed that the girl never really existed. They were now on their way to a hotel where the signal was originated from.

"Do you also have the suspicion that this case is not what you first thought it would be?" Harry asked Shinichi discretely while Mori entertained the other detective that they had found during their investigation who had also been tasked to find the man who was now dead.

"Yes. This more and more looks like a messed up coup with the dead man being the accomplice of the other two. Remember the billion Yen robbery some time back? I think we stumbled over the culprits here." Shinichi said.

"I agree, but to make those idiots realize it will be tricky. As I was not involved in the first case with finding the man, I am not in the best position to solve this. And you know how Mori thinks about high school detectives. As long as we don't have absolute proof he won't do anything I suggest." Harry grumbled.

"I know, think how I am feeling all the time when he pushes my input away as useless babbling of a child." Shinichi answered.

They were in front of the elevator when a woman pushing a trolley with four suitcases came out. They fell of the trolley and Mori and the other detective helped her putting them on again. The woman apologized for the mishap and then went her way. They took the elevator and finally were at the door of room 802, the room the man they were looking for inhabited. Mori knocked at the door furiously when the door simply opened. The sight they found was gruesome; the man was dead. I short investigation of the corpse turned out the smell of almond from the man's mouth, which left only one conclusion, he had been poisoned with cyanide.

The empty cases at the side were a hint Harry and Shinichi immediately interpreted as the proof they needed fort their theory of this being more than it had appeared in the beginning. The confirmation of Inspector Megure that Mr Hirota, the first victim had not been married and never had a daughter cemented the suspicion. Masami Hirota, the girl they had searched, was in reality one of the three who committed the robbery.

Harry inspected the corpse and realized that it was still warm, so the murder couldn't have happened more than half an hour ago. Shinichi then knew. The woman in the escalator had been Masami. She had shed her disguise and they hadn't recognized her. The facial features had been similar. Shinichi quickly let Harry know. They left the room, where Mori and the other detective had called the police to and tried to get to the woman before she could escape. Thankfully Ran didn't notice them when they left.

They caught the woman taking a cab in front of the hotel and thanks to Harry managed to get the next one to follow her. A silent confundus charm was all it took for the next man waiting for a cab to let them pass him. Harry's fame as part of the detective duo Kudo / Black now was really useful. The driver didn't even ask why he should follow the other cab. The woman left her cab at the harbour. They ran through the paths between the shipping containers looking for her. They heard a muffled shot and finally Shinichi found her when she fell down, blood coming from her mouth.

Nobody was around but the woman clearly had a big injury at her stomach. Shinichi tried to stop the blood flow by pressing his hands on her stomach but it was just too much of it and he had blood all over his hands when he looked at them. Harry decided to put his new abilities to good use. Nobody was around and therefore he could use magic to save the woman. He took out his wand and cast a stasis spell on her. That would keep her alive until the healers arrived. Thank Merlin that in Japan there was an emergency number for healers like in the muggle world.

"I will call an ambulance. Please try to hold on." Harry said to the woman.

"It's no use, I will die either way. The injury is too severe. What are you doing here? I know you little boy, you were at the detective agency. How come you are here?" She asked obviously not having noticed anything about Harry's spell.

"I accidentally placed a transmitter at your watch and when you disappeared we tried to find you. We found the huge guy, whose watch it obviously had been, by following the signal. We also found out about you three being the culprits in the one billion Yen robbery." Shinichi explained.

"The ambulance is on its way." Harry said.

"Who are you two?" She asked.

"Conan, no my name is Shinichi Kudo and this is Harrison Black." Shinichi told her.

"I have heard about you. It is ironic, now all of us who have been hired for the robbery are dead, Kenzo for his driving skills, the strong guy for the rough work and me for the planning. The organisation has deceived me."

"The organisation?" Shinichi asked.

"Yes the big mysterious organisation. Being a little fish at the low end I don't know much more than that they all wear black." She admitted.

"BLACK?" Shinichi yelled.

"Can you describe your murderer?" Harry asked clearly seeing the shock on Shinichi's face. This could be an important clue for their case.

"A man with long light brown hair and a bulky man with sun glasses. They both wear black suits and hats, the long haired guy also a long black coat."

She grabbed Shinichi's hand as he was closest to her.

"Please listen to me. The suitcases are at the reception of the hotel. I don't want them to get the money. I want you to find them before those pigs. I don't want to be used by them any longer. I trust you young detectives."

Then she fell down and lay still.

"Don't worry; I used a stasis spell. She will survive and then we can get more information from her. While her wounds are bad, they aren't outside of what magical healers can treat, especially those here in Japan." Harry assured Shinichi. "They will be here any minute. They are using my mobile as a beacon to apparate here."

True to Harry's word three healers apparated on the scene and soon set to work, treating the worst injuries. Harry discussed with the healers that he would tell the police nothing about this. While she was a subject in a crime, she was obviously also a target of the same organization that Shinichi was hiding from. If the report stated that she had survived it wouldn't be good. So they left the one million yen robbery unsolved in one part, even if they knew that it wasn't entirely right, but they really needed more information. After all, they would get the money back and therefore the worst part of this crime, as far as the police knew, would be done for.

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><p>They found the money where the woman had said it was. Harry told Ran that he would take Shinichi home and try to help him over the things he had seen today. Ran agreed as Harry had more experience with the things somebody saw at crime scenes and he also was Conan's cousin. Harry just led Shinichi into the training room with the punching bag and told him to let it out.<p>

Shinichi hit on the bag repeatedly until he couldn't lift his arms anymore. He was frustrated. While the woman was estimated to survive, the healers had told them that she would probably be in coma for two months. That meant before she woke up again there was no way to get more information.

"I take it that it were the same two guys you met at Tropical Land." Harry stated.

"Yes, the description matched. I just want them pay for their crimes. I want my life back. I want to tell Ran how I feel. It is so hard seeing her pretend that it doesn't hurt her that I disappeared."

"I know, but at the moment our hands are tied. We don't know how to locate the organisation. We need more information. We will use the time to get you stronger and find out more about them. They seem to operate from the shadows. Well that is one thing I also know how to do. And I have the advantage of being able to use magic. I doubt they can do that."

They both sat in silence for some time. Finally Harry decided to make something to eat. He decided to go for something simple and fast so he made some simple pancakes, put jam on the table and the two boys silently ate them.

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><p><strong>So, how did you like the idea that I keep Akemi Miyano alive? I think I can use the character nicely in the story, even if I will put her on the backburner for some time. And I am taking care of some horcruxes. So how will the Death Munchers get into Hogwarts to kill Dumbles? Or will they? You will have to wait to find out. Bye.<strong>


	10. Contemplations

**Hello everybody. This weekend this story is due to an update again. i hope you like it.**

**As I was asked in the review, I have read all the Detective Conan chapters released on 'mangareader' so far. So I am up to date to the development of the manga. Though I won't need much of that knowledge in the current state of the story. And yes, at one point Ai / Shiho will find out that Akemi is still alive, but not that soon. Remember, she only appears a long time after Kaito Kid in the manga. (Volume 18 to be precise while Kid is Volume 8).**

**Now I can only say happy reading and continue leaving me so many great reviews.**

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><p><strong>Contemplations <strong>

Sirius was suffering from a major jetlag. The time difference between England and Japan was not funny if you had to deal with it. But he was really pleased with his trip. He had destroyed the locket and the diadem at Hogwarts, found out from listening into some Order member's discussions that the MOB was suffering from an unknown disease of his hand, it had somehow gone completely black and seemed dead to them, and he had managed that the goblins made a search of all the Death Eater vaults. It really helped that Harry and he were two of the wealthiest clients the goblins had.

Thankfully only small amounts of Harry's money had been missing and those had been taken when Molly Weasley had got gold for Harry before his fourth and fifth years at Hogwarts when he had given her his key for a day each. Due to the implemented restrictions all trust vaults had to prevent the child in question to spend too much money at once, after all the trust vaults were meant to cover the expenses of the child and to teach it how to handle a set amount of money, a very important part of growing up for pureblood families, she couldn't get more than two hundred galleons for herself each time.

While it was making Sirius mad that the family Harry had begun to see as his own would steal from him, he would have helped them if they had just asked after all, that was just who Harry was, he was really glad that the goblins vehemently refused to let anybody make transactions for any of the Potter vaults without the key. The family vault had been sealed until Harry would either turn seventeen or he was emancipated.

The only vault that was partly accessible was the heirloom vault and the things could only be looked at in the vault, which was mostly done so that the heir had access to family library books. The trust vault was refilled to the limit of one thousand galleons, split in galleons, sickles and knuts each year at Harry's birthday. But otherwise no money could have been taken. And Harry was smart enough to always keep his key safe and not let it lie around.

Sirius was sure now that Ron had tried to find the key during the school years but Harry had told Sirius that he had learned a very useful little charm in his second week at school which allowed him to make a secret layer at his trunk. After all, growing up with the Dursleys who had always taken the money that Harry earned with odd jobs in the neighbourhood from him, had driven home the need to hide anything valuable. And how to steal back the money from Vernon. If Harry wanted to he was a really accomplished thief. But he only did that if his victim really deserved it. Harry was too nice and law abiding normally. That early into their first year, Ron had not been as bold as later on when their 'friendship' had been established. So he hadn't dared searching Harry's trunk for the key. Sirius had no doubt that if he had found the key Molly Weasley would have used it to withdraw 'spending money' for Harry without him ever noticing.

Harry had really regretted not having bought a proper trunk before starting school but he suspected that Dumbledore had made sure that Hagrid kept him away from those things that would have had the potential for Harry to slip from his control. He had only changed his model the summer before third year when he had stayed in Diagon Alley. The trunk was a thing that would enable some of Dumbledore's paid spies to get a good look through it when Harry was either sleeping or absent from his dorm.

A high class model would have given Harry more possibilities to keep others from searching his things. And Harry had kept the knowledge that he owned just such a model a closely kept secret. Nobody at Hogwarts knew that he had four compartments more in his trunk than he said there were. Thankfully the Sorting Hat had really known what he was talking about when he said Harry would do well in Slytherin; the boy was just too cunning for his opponents. And they never knew it. Growing up with those despicable Dursleys had taught Harry one thing; don't expect adults to stand up for you. All those muggle adults in Surrey had to have been blind or completely disinterested in the well-being of a small child.

No, the neighbours had even encouraged the strict handling the Dursleys called their treatment of Harry. Vernon and Petunia were masters at keeping up a perfectly normal facade. A young boy had to learn discipline and that you didn't get things for free, were some of their usual reasons which were just taken for face value by the neighbours who also were led to believe that Dudley was held to the same values.

Harry had shown clear signs of an abused and neglected child and nobody had acted. After all, what kind of boy would agree to move in with his godfather after having met the man just one hour before and having believed for a year that said godfather had betrayed his parents?

After Harry had moved into headquarters before his fifth year, Sirius had sat Harry down one night with a mug of hot chocolate with a bit fire whiskey in it and got the boy to really tell him what had happened in his life. Private family quarters were fantastic sometimes. He needed to know everything to really help Harry and he was sure that Harry had never opened up and told somebody about his life. Sure he had let slip little things from time to time but nobody knew the whole picture, the real boy behind the carefully created mask. It had taken five hours to get to the bottom of it all but Harry had talked.

He had told him about the first things he remembered from living with the Dursleys, the shouting at him, which was a reason he hated shouting people and had always had problems with trust. How early he had been forced to do the housework for the Dursleys. Sirius had had to force himself to keep calm when he heard that Harry had to 'work for his keep' when he had been four. It would have been detrimental to stop Harry from talking. It needed to get out. Like it had been for him when James had cornered him during their sixth year and they had spent a whole night in the kitchen with only one house elf to keep the hot chocolate coming.

James had been the one to make him realize that while he wasn't wanted by his family and that he couldn't do a thing about it, he had friends who did care about him and would be his family instead of his blood relatives. That he was a good person, despite all his flaws. It had been after the horrible event with Snape. He had been horrified about what he had done; it hadn't only been dangerous for Snape but also could have killed Remus if he had bitten Snape. He had been so stupid. The other marauders had shown their feelings about this clearly but had also forgiven him in the end. But he hadn't really thought that Snape could be so stupid to go after a transformed werewolf and he was sure that the slimy bastard had at least had a suspicion.

He had vowed to never be that stupid again and to always protect his friends. That had been a major reason for suggesting that he would be the decoy to keep James, Lily and Harry safe while they were in hiding but he hadn't suspected Peter as the traitor.

Harry had continued his tale with how he had been forced to play dumb at school to not be punished at home for getting better marks than Dudley. The only one who ever figured it out, was the old librarian at his primary school. The library was his sanctuary where Dudley would never look for him. The old woman, who had retired a year before Harry went to Hogwarts, had always wondered how a boy who practically devoured books could do that bad in his classes. She had observed Harry and seen the reasons why he did it. She could understand it, but she had no proof of the Dursleys abusing Harry.

While Petunia was a nasty piece of shit, she was smart enough to cover her tracks. Harry never showed signs of physical abuse. But abuse went further than beating a child. And the beatings Dudley gave him with his gang were bad enough as they were. But they were nothing she could have acted upon. The Dursleys always got Dudley out of punishments, after all, he was just a child that was a bit energetic in their opinion, and after a while she came to realize that Harry only suffered more when the Dursleys were informed of any misdoings of their darling son. So she took to the only help she could give Harry.

She told him how to get away from the Dursleys as fast as he could. She looked up laws about emancipation of minors and what was required for a minor to be able to do so and when it could happen at earliest. It all led to the passing of O-levels, the muggle equivalent of the wizarding OWLs. If a minor passed with high enough marks and was able to prove he was able to get along financially or had a scholarship for a school where he could go for the A-levels it could be done.

Normally the minor was given a year to prove the decision of the authorities right while being supported by a mentor. If this went well the emancipation was finalized. Harry had from then on studied with the librarian and developed his own more intricate plan. He would try for a scholarship on an all-year boarding school to get away from the Dursleys as soon as he went to secondary school where he would be away from Dudley and have some time to show he wasn't an idiot. He was well ahead of all his class mates by the time he finished primary school. Then the Hogwarts letter came and gave Harry the possibility to escape the Dursleys most time of the year. He only had to return over the summer holidays. And perhaps he could find a way in the wizarding world to get completely away from them earlier than he had thought.

Sadly that wasn't possible, but he had the same timeframe as he had before finding out that he was a wizard. Until the end of his fifth year. If he managed to ace the OWLs he could get his emancipation. Soon he found out that those around him wouldn't appreciate him excelling, so he just learned what he needed to know in secret. That was, after all, nothing new for him. While the MOB had hoped he would get Harry into risking more after sending him the cloak, it had been an invaluable tool to learn all Harry wanted to during night time. He restricted those sessions to two nights a week so that nobody would get suspicious of him being overly tired.

He chose Friday nights as Saturdays were free of classes and it was normal for students to skip breakfast to lie in and Tuesday nights after he found out that Madam Pince was at a club which librarians in the wizarding world had founded in London those evenings. He always treated the books carefully, after all, they had been his refuge for years and he had got a high respect for books during that time. He even sent Madam Pince little anonymous Christmas gifts each year. He only slept two hours from Tuesdays to Wednesdays but after the lesson from Snape on pepper-up-potions, even if they would only get to them in their third year, he just brewed some for his use and managed to go through those days without raising suspicion.

Thankfully the potion was fairly easy to brew if you could follow a recipe. And getting the recipe was easy. He had just taken the book from the library during one of his homework sessions, Ron didn't notice anything, he just thought Harry used the book for his homework, and copied the recipe. It helped that he had double history in the morning during his second year. Nobody suspected anything wrong with students sleeping in History.

The worst things for Sirius to listen to were the 'adventures' he, Ron and Hermione got into. The quest for the Philosophers Stone being obstacles a first year could overcome? Harry had got suspicious when he had been imprisoned at the Dursleys that summer and had much time to just think. Then the basilisk. How could nobody find out what was petrifying the students? And a thirteen year old girl just happened to stumble over it? Not likely. The whole episode with Dumbledore leaving the school was just another plot to push Harry in a certain direction.

Third year his own escape and the fact that Dumbledore suddenly decided to post Remus at Hogwarts. He would have hoped that Remus could find him faster than others and would deliver him to the MOB before he could tell Harry anything. Well Dumbledore had underestimated Remus urge to find out the truth if he was confronted with Peter.

He had also underestimated Harry's observational skills and sneakiness. After all, only a fool would not have noticed Hermione's impossible timetable, especially after Ron had pointed out that she had three classes at the same time the first double period on Mondays during breakfast the first day. So Harry had done some research in the first of his all-nighters that year and had come upon a book about tools that had to be approved by the Ministry. From then on he knew Hermione had to have a time-turner to get to all of her classes.

Well, more than one person could use it. During the holidays he had spent in Diagon Alley, Harry had visited Gringotts and asked if there were more vaults his parents had left him and if there were any books inside of them. The goblins had been surprised that he didn't know about his family vault, as he had been sent quarterly statements since his eleventh birthday. It had led to some massive swearing on Harry's and the goblins' parts but they had found a solution to the problem. Harry would send Hedwig to Gringotts to get his statements as she was always able to reach him and the goblins would just go on with sending a second statement the normal way to prevent the one who stole his statements from getting suspicious.

Hedwig, his unnaturally smart owl had brought him the letters when he was alone, which Harry managed to be for a few minutes every day without a problem. They had to leave him alone for some time, or he would have noticed their strange behaviour after all. Right now Hedwig was staying at Harry's potions teacher's home. Keeping her in the middle of the city was not possible at the moment. They had to keep low profile and if anybody in the wizarding world told about a new family of wizards living in Tokyo with a snowy owl, that could give MOB hints to their whereabouts. But Hedwig didn't complain. Harry visited her twice a week when he went there for his potions lessons and always brought her some treats.

They also thought she liked it better to live there than in a city where she wouldn't be able to hunt as easily.

In his family's heirloom vault he came upon the family grimoire, sadly he couldn't take anything from the vault or he would have taken it with him and in it he found a spell that copied everything from books to magical items perfectly with all the properties the original had. It was developed by one of his ancestors who had not taken the law that serious. It even bypassed copyright charms. His original thought had been to get his own library with the books that the Hogwarts library had, but now Harry would make even better use of the spell. He one day in the second week snuck up behind Hermione and threw a small vial of sleeping gas in front of her. It would only last for five minutes and didn't do her any harm so he didn't have any problems with his conscience about it.

He just knew she would never condone his rule-breaking. So he had to do it without her help. He copied the time-turner, tucked his copy away under his robes and went to wake up Hermione playing the role of the concerned friend. Hermione never figured out that he had his own time-turner now. Harry used it for the same purpose as Hermione. He attended more classes with it; he just used his invisibility cloak to sit in the classes. This way he was able to learn Ancient Runes and Arithmancy with nobody being any the wiser. He also used it to get his homework done and do additional research on interesting spells without stressing out. He never understood why Hermione didn't just add another two hours where she would do homework for some subjects in an unused classroom. That was his way of doing the homework after all. But probably that would have gone against the rules.

One day he had even used it to get more sleep after he had been completely exhausted in fourth year while trying to figure out the riddle for the second task. That had been frustrating. He hadn't slept that night at all and was basically asleep while being awake thanks to an invigoration draught which worked much better than pepper-up potion to keep him awake. Sadly there were limits to how much a fourteen year old wizard's body could take. So Harry had taken the time turner, gone back eight hours and slept for seven and a half hours. After a good shower and putting on fresh robes he was ready to face the rest of the day. The others only noticed that he had been gone for five minutes which he had excused himself to the bathroom. That was how you properly used a useful tool like a time turner.

In his opinion rules were made to find ways around them without hurting anybody. Sirius was really proud at Harry for this statement. Harry had also made good use of his abilities with Parseltongue. After all, why should he let the perfect training facility for him go to waste? He had snuck into the Chamber of Secrets at least three times a week using the time-turner to practice the spells he had looked up. With the Chamber being completely outside of Dumbledore's control, it was perfect for him. Myrtle was only too happy not to tell anybody that he went down there regularly if he talked to her for a few minutes each time he went down there. And she had been a good source of information on Tom Riddle when he was at school. It was always good to know your enemy.

He also read a book about slaying dangerous beasts. The one to kill the beast had the right to harvest the carcass. Harry had got many litres of venom, several metres of the hide, the heart strings could be used for wands and so on. He had given the goblins the job to sell the things he had managed to harvest to the highest bidder. His vault had been filled up nicely by this. He had told the goblins to put the money mostly into his family vault as his trust vault had to appear normal to outsiders if he ever needed to send somebody to get money for him.

He was glad he had thought about the precaution as Mrs Weasley had got his supplies for fourth year due to the Quidditch World Cup finals. As he now knew that she had been into the conspiracy, she would have reported to MOB if Harry's trust vault had been filled with the winnings of the basilisk sale.

Sirius thought MOB must have been oblivious to the fact Peter was at Hogwarts the whole time. Otherwise he would have just killed the rat and be done with an eventual coming out of the truth. MOB must have been glad to ensure Harry and Sirius were separated after Peter got away. After all he could pretend to be the good one but unable to force the minister to see the truth. Sirius on the run was not dangerous for his plans. After Voldemort returned after the fiasco of the Triwizard Tournament, which he forced upon Harry instead of pulling him out like he had the power to as his magical guardian at school, he imprisoned Sirius at his own home, being blissfully ignorant of the last part of Harry's quest to emancipation.

Both Sirius and Harry knew that he needed to get emancipated as soon as possible. While Sirius would have loved to be Harry's guardian he couldn't do the job while being a convicted criminal in the eyes of the British Ministry of Magic. They would never grant him custody. So when the opportunity came for Sirius to escape his prison, they decided via the mirrors that they would act immediately.

It had taken Sirius weeks to get Harry to the point that he didn't feel like the guilty party in the messed up relationship with the Dursleys. They had really done some brainwashing on Harry. With a lot of patience and the promise that Harry never had to return to them, it had finally sunk in that he could leave the past behind him.

* * *

><p>Harry and Shinichi sat at a hotel room facing Shinichi's grinning parents. Both boys were scowling at the adults. Shinichi had called Harry after he had successfully escaped his kidnapper, who had posed as his fake identity's mother for Ran and Kogoro, which had been Yukiko in disguise, to plan how to get more information about the black organisation and possibly the poison that had shrunk Shinichi. Their plan had been good and they had managed to sneak into the room where the meeting was held.<p>

Harry being able to disillusion both of them when they were in a tight spot on the floor was really useful for their plan. They had called the room service for the room they had located the criminals in and used the distraction to sneak into the room. Harry had snuck into the bathroom and Conan had hidden in the closet. In the end the masked man had found Shinichi in the closet and it had looked like he was about to shoot him. Harry had taken action and kicked the gun from the masked man's hand which sadly landed in front of the woman. They had been really surprised when Harry managed to disarm the woman as well with a silent disarming charm.

But when Harry shielded Shinichi and inspected the weapon he found it to be a really realistic fake.

Then the professor and Shinichi's parents had shed their disguises which led to the current glaring contest.

"Come on, boys, we just had to make sure you saw the danger in this hair-brained attempt of yours to go against the organisation on your own." Yusaku explained.

"But I am really proud of you, Shinichi. You found all the clues and managed to find the culprit. I am just wondering how you would have managed to get away with your underage magic without another witch here." He wondered looking at Harry.

"I am emancipated so I can use magic without repercussions. And to protect others against criminals falls under the loopholes in the statute of secrecy. Especially if there are no other witnesses. If you had really been criminals you would have been interrogated under a truth spell and then obliviated. No risk for exposing the wizarding world. And don't tell us we don't know what we are getting into. I am used to fight for my life. I have done so for nearly six years now. Ever since I re-entered the wizarding world at eleven."

"What do you mean by that?" Yukiko asked interested.

"Let me say it like this; Shinichi is, like we wrote to you, a powerful wizard but Dumbledore, or MOB like I like to call him, bound his powers which would have led to Shinichi's death upon him reaching magical adulthood. The same MOB has played with my life from the moment my parents died in 1981. He placed me with abusive relatives and every year at Hogwarts I was forced to face another of his insane training schemes."

Yukiko had problems staying calm. Nobody threatened her son and got away.

"Something about Shinichi must have made him weary, we don't know yet what it is but we intend to find out. Sooner or later MOB will find out that his little plot to get rid of Shinichi has failed and he could come for him. At the moment he is too busy fighting Voldemort in Britain but we don't know how long that will last. He could just leave under the cover to get more international help for the fight against Voldemort and he could come here."

"So you want to go up against a criminal syndicate, a magical terrorist and the most powerful manipulator in recent British history. Excuse me, but I don't like your plan at all." Yusaku said.

"I would love to be a normal teenager, believe it. But sadly I am not. I somehow have this connection to Voldemort through my scar, I have a prophecy, which I would really like to hear in full, over my head, my best friend somehow poses enough of a threat to MOB that he came here to Japan just to block his magical abilities, my godfather was framed and left to rot in Azkaban by MOB just for the reason that MOB wanted to have full control over my life. Voldemort won't stop trying to kill me, so I can't just hide here and forget about him. I will have to train until I can face him and kill him. I don't like it but I don't have a choice there.

"The organization will also try to kill both of us if they find out that Shinichi is still alive. It won't matter if he were to move to America with you. He poses a threat to them with everything he knows and the organization kills anybody who could know anything. So we can't avoid that problem either. We can only prepare as well as we can. As you should know from your studies in Potions, Mrs Kudo, it is harder to find an antidote to a poison without the poison than if you have a sample. So trying to get our hands on the poison would be really beneficial for us." Harry said irritated.

Yusaku and Yukiko looked at each other contemplating. Both Harry and Shinichi were set upon solving this case with the organization and had good reason to also take on the other two problems. They knew that besides Ran Shinichi never had any true close friends. They were all just acquaintances. Now he had a true friend who was like him and they understood that he didn't want to leave Harry alone in his quest. Those two were good for each other.

"Alright, we will accept your decision, Shinichi. But I will contact some of my friends with Interpol and put them on the case as well. It would be best to get as much information on this organization as possible." Yusaku said.

Shinichi knew it was the best he would get from his parents and nodded.

* * *

><p>The next two days Shinichi and Harry spent with Yukiko and Yusaku Kudo. Shinichi's parents told them more about how Yukiko had decided to not attend a magical school but a muggle one because she had always wanted to become an actress and there were simply more opportunities in the muggle world. She had been tutored in basic magic, but she wasn't exceptional in using it. She had her NEWTs in Charms, Transfiguration and Potions, but no others. Those three helped her most with her job after all. Additionally she had been really good friends with Eri Kisaki, Ran's mother and hadn't wanted to go to a separate school than her. So her parents had relented and let her go to muggle school as long as she got at least five OWLs and three NEWTs. She had done exactly that. Her OWLs were in Charms, Transfiguration, Potions, Ancient Runes, Languages, Magical History, Muggle History and Herbology. Her parents had been satisfied with her results and had supported their daughter.<p>

Harry liked getting to know Shinichi's parents. While he didn't understand why they had left Shinichi on his own while they went to the States, he could see that they loved him dearly. Perhaps it had something to do with Shinichi's stubbornness. His mother was probably the reason for that. She could be incredibly stubborn if she set her mind on something. One thing she taught them the basics of was non-magical disguise that could fool everybody. Her masks were incredible. And she could imitate voices really well. It was definitely an ability that was worth learning. Once they went to England, it would be priceless to be able to disguise themselves without magic, therefore not tipping the Death Eaters or the MOB off.

* * *

><p>It was a bit awkward getting Shinichi back to Ran. Yukiko used the opportunity to embarrass her son a bit. She also managed to find a plausible excuse why she would prefer Conan staying with Ran and Kogoro rather than Simon and Harrison. She just told her that a little boy was better off if there was some female influence in the house. While Simon had managed to do a good job with Harrison, she also knew how often he had to go on business trips. Ran, happy to elevate the troubles of the concerned mother agreed to look after Conan. And as long as the costs were settled, her father didn't mind either.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>That's it. I hope you liked it. I didn't describe the case in more detail, but I might write some flashbacks if you want me to. I just don't think that it would help the story much at this point. Until next time.<strong>


	11. Little Detectives

**Hello, welcome at this hot weekend. I don't know how the weather is whereever you live but we have had a really hot day for our area. I bet the open-air swimming pools made a killing. Well, here is the update for my story. Thanks to those that left reviews. Happy reading.**

* * *

><p><strong>Little Detectives<strong>

Harry sat at the breakfast table. He was reading the local part of the newspaper where an article informed about a series of robberies. A couple of thieves, one man and a woman were stealing red gems. They didn't take any of the other valuable pieces of jewellery, only the red stones. It was a mystery.

"Anything interesting in the paper?" Sirius asked coming into the room, his hair still wet from showering.

"There is this series of thefts of red gems. I don't understand why they would only steal the red gems. It doesn't make any sense. I mean, even if they were after something special, why would they direct attention to that? The police will only increase guards around all red gems now." Harry said shaking his head.

"You're right, that is strange. What are your plans for today?" Sirius asked while taking a piece of toast from the basket on the table and buttering it before putting a slice of cheese on it.

"I want to take Shinichi and the other kids to that exhibition of famous detectives that is currently held at Beika Museum. The kids wanted to go there and Mrs Yoshida asked me if I would accompany them. I don't mind, I wanted to see the exhibition anyway." Harry said putting the paper down.

"Okay. How is Shinichi's training coming along?" Sirius wanted to know.

"Very well. He's a fast learner. I really hope we can cut down the amount of time we need to get him to his full power. I don't know how long Voldemort will keep things at their current level in Great Britain. As long as MOB lives he'll probably not go for the big coup, taking over the Ministry, but there can be no doubt that that is his ultimate goal to rule the country. We are concentrating on Shinichi's practical skills as you know. I think we can push the stuff up to fifth year into him by October if we can concentrate on Charms, Defence, Transfiguration and Duelling. Everything else can wait until we have found a way to turn him back to normal." Harry said taking a piece of toast for himself.

"How are your experiments concerning that?" Sirius asked after taking a bite out of his toast.

"Not that well. I might have an idea what happened from analysing Shinichi's blood, but I have no experience how to counter something like this. I first need to collect more information. It could be similar to a shrinking solution, but there are no components in Shinichi's blood that indicate it. Just the effects are similar. When we brewed the Potion in Snape's class, the correct potion shrunk Trevor, Neville's toad, back to a tadpole. I will research that idea more in depth soon." Harry informed Sirius.

Then the doorbell rang.

"That's probably Ayumi. I told her to come over after breakfast so we could go together and then meet the other three." Harry said and stood up to open the door.

"Good morning, Harry." Ayumi greeted him smiling.

"Good morning, Ayumi. I see you are ready to go. Are you looking forward to the exhibition?" Harry asked smiling at the little girl.

"Yes. That will be really interesting. Perhaps we can learn something more for the Detective Boys." She said.

Harry chuckled. The kids were really cute. They had founded a junior detective club and pulled Conan to be a member. Well, so far their cases were mostly lost cats. He let her come in and led her into the kitchen.

"Good morning, Ayumi." Sirius greeted the girl.

"Good morning, Mr Black. Are you coming to the exhibition too?" She asked.

"No, I have to look over some reports from work. We have an important project at the moment." Sirius said and emptied his cup of coffee.

He had already written coffee onto the shopping list. It had gone out after Harry had brewed the pot for the morning.

"Okay." Ayumi said smiling.

Harry drank the rest of his coffee and then went to get his coat.

"I'm ready, Ayumi. We can go." Harry said.

Ayumi nodded and both put on their shoes. The said goodbye to Sirius and walked to the meeting point they had agreed upon with Genta, Mitsuhiko and Conan.

* * *

><p>They arrived there ten minutes after leaving the appartment.<p>

"Good morning you three." Harry greeted.

"Morning, Harry. Are you also so excited to see the exhibition about all those great detectives?" Genta asked.

"Yes, I am. So let's not waste any time and go there." Harry said.

The kids, well those that were kids, cheered and walked towards the Beika Museum. Once there Harry paid the entrance fees for them all and they started exploring the exhibition. It was really extensive and showed methods and history of fictional and real detectives all over the world. Then, after one and a half hours of exploring the exhibition two masked people started shooting in the air. Harry looked at them and saw that they had knocked out the receptionist. Many visitors started screaming in fear and tried to run away, but a second shot was fired which made them stop.

"Shut up! Everybody listen! This is a hostage taking. We have closed off the entrances of this museum. We have placed bombs all over the building and if you don't follow our orders, we will blow up this museum. We have a simple demand. With all of you being so interested in the detective exhibition, one of you surely can solve a little riddle for us. If you can, we will simply take one hostage with us to cover our escape. If not, well, hope that the police isn't stupid enough to come here." The man with a mask said.

The second one was a woman.

"You know what to look for." The man said while keeping his gun pointed at the visitors, the woman nodded and left the room.

It took thirty minutes before she came back with a bag full of gems.

"I got them. But from what I saw the right one isn't here either." She told him.

"Damn, well, we still have our option that there is a smart one here to solve the riddle. Listen up; we will now have you come here one by one to solve the riddle. Pray that one can solve it." The man said.

One after another the visitors were forced to look at the riddle and think about the solution. Harry knew he couldn't use magic in front of this many muggles. So he would need to find another way out of this situation. But first he needed to get the hostages to safety or the two criminals somewhere else. He discretely did a screening charm on the whole building to see if there really were bombs or if they were bluffing. The charm found rectangular objects in three places that didn't seem to belong there. The problem was without being close he couldn't really do a thorough check. Those could be fakes. Outside things got noisy when police sirens were heard.

The man now grabbed the closest person to him as a direct hostage, which sadly was Ayumi. She cried in fear.

"You will be my leverage to make sure the cops don't do anything stupid little girl." The man said. "Nobody does anything stupid or she is dead." He shouted. "Keep them under control, I'll tell the cops to buzz off."

"You don't really think the police would just go away now that they know that you are keeping hostages here? Show me that riddle. I'll solve it and you let everybody go." Harry said stepping forward.

"Oh, and who might you be that you are so sure you can solve that riddle?" The woman asked.

"I'm Harrison Black, I'm a detective." Harry stated, knowing that if he got them to concentrate on him Shinichi would be able to move more freely.

"The Hawk? That must be our lucky day. Yes, you could probably solve the riddle for us." The man said. "Lock the others in here. We take that detective to solve the riddle for us."

The woman nodded and motioned Harry forward with her gun.

"I want you to let the girl go. I should be more than enough as a hostage." Harry said.

"Such chivalry. But why not? The police will be even more inclined to not risk their precious high school detective than this little girl." The man said.

He let Ayumi go who ran to the others. Harry was held at point of the gun and led out of the room. The woman locked the door behind them all. Many people sank to the floor, shaking in fear. Ayumi too was scared by the experience, but she tried to be strong.

"What are we going to do now?" Mitsuhiko asked Conan.

"We will find a way. Harry made sure that the criminals concentrate on him. We need to look around if there is another way out of the museum. The door they locked leads to the main entrance. All the exhibition rooms that the museum has are on this side. And if there really are those two, we could get everybody to safety. Harry is no idiot and knows how to deal with dangerous situations." Conan tried to assure them.

"Okay. Let's first look around. Do you have your detective badges with you?" Conan asked.

The other three nodded.

"Good, then we will split up. The first one to find a door to the outside informs the others." Conan instructed.

* * *

><p>The kids ran off to look for another exit. Shinichi knew that if they found a way, he could easily open the door magically. As long as nobody saw him using magic, it wouldn't matter. Officially he was seventeen. His birthday had been just two weeks ago. Of course things hadn't been easy; he had been involved in a bombing case with a culprit that held a grudge against him. Ran had nearly become a victim. He was really glad that it hadn't come to the worst. The event had made him push even more effort in his training. He didn't want to be in such a situation again. If he had been able to get the door opened magically he might have got the people that were locked in the foyer of the cinema out of there before there was any danger of the bomb exploding.<p>

Shinichi looked through all the rooms, but so far there were only high windows. Nothing he could use to get the other people out. He would need a door or a window closer to the ground. The only door he found was on the second floor and led to a terrace. Nothing he could work with without a ladder or some ropes, which he didn't have.

"Conan, I have found nothing." He heard Mitsuhiko over the micro remitter in the badge.

"I also didn't find anything." Genta said.

"I have a door, but it's locked." Ayumi told them.

"Where are you Ayumi?" Conan asked.

"The room with the famous villains." Ayumi informed them.

"We are coming, stay where you are, Ayumi." Conan said.

Soon the four kids saw the door Ayumi had found. On a map that he had found on the way here Conan had looked up the location of this door and where it led. It was an emergency exit that the employees of the museum could open with a code. It made sense that they had been disabled before the hostage taking. This way the visitors had no way to get out.

"Good work, Ayumi. I think I can work out the code. Can you three go back and get the other people here so we can get them out of the museum?" Conan asked.

"Yes." They said and ran back to get the other visitors.

Shinichi waited until they were out of sight and looked around the room to see if there were any cameras that would film him while using magic. Sadly there was one and he couldn't risk it. Though when he looked at the pad he snorted. The numbers that were used for the combination were lighter than the others. Four seven and eight were used regularly. He tried the first combination and failed, with the second try he got the door to open though. The two criminals must be really stupid to think such a simple thing would keep anybody inside.

He opened the door and looked around. There was a short corridor with another door from where he saw light. He put a stopper under the door and walked to the door that led outside. This door was a normal door and was easily opened with the key that was hanging on a nail next to the door. When he looked on the outside, he saw that there was a number pad like the one he saw inside. Seemingly the two criminals had bluffed with the bombs. At least here were none. He heard footsteps coming closer. Obviously the others had got the visitors that were caught with them.

He motioned them over and told them all to be quiet to not alarm the hostage takers. He just hoped Harry would be able to deal with them.

* * *

><p>Harry meanwhile was led to a small room with a table and forced to sit down. He was given a piece of paper and a pen and told to solve the riddle on the paper. Harry looked at the riddle. There were some drawings, some letters and some signs that looked suspiciously like runes. There was the rune for diamond and the rune for trap. Then there were the chemical signs for elements. The elements were in no logical order that corresponded with the periodic system of elements. The rune for diamond was connected with the sign for copper. The rune for trap was connected with lead. Just what did this mean?<p>

"And, any idea, master detective?" The man asked nastily.

"If I had some more information it would be easier. Who set up this riddle for example? As you can't solve it, it must have been somebody else." Harry said calmly.

"Our former boss, but he was about to cheat us of our share of the massive haul we made some time back. So we gave the police a little hint where to find him. But the bastard hid it all away and only left the riddle as the key where he hid it." The woman said angrily.

"Did he have any specific hobbies?" Harry asked. He had an idea, but he needed confirmation.

"Not that we know of. Though he had this astrology tick and always read his horoscope." The man said.

Harry nodded. That confirmed his theory. Now he just needed to play for time.

"I need a book on planets and our solar system and the date of the birthday of your boss. If I'm right I have an idea where it could be." He told them.

The man nodded to the woman and she went to get the book. They had seen that the museum had that kind of book in the information area. Ten minutes later she returned with the book and Harry looked up the planets of the solar system. Of course he already knew this from his studies in Astronomy, but he had to keep appearances. As long as the man pointed his gun at him, he couldn't really act. And no matter what, Shinichi still needed to find an exit for the hostages first. He took his time to write down his conclusions. He drew connections, crossed out connections and finally decided that he had wasted enough time. He silently cast a spell to reveal human presence in the museum and was very happy when he only got the answer that he and the two criminals were the only ones left.

"I know where the hiding place is." Harry said turning towards the two criminals.

"Where is it?" The woman asked eagerly.

"Well, the whole riddle is based on the old belief which element is connected with which planet. Let's look at the signs; there are the signs for quicksilver, then copper, silver, iron, lead and tin. Under the symbol for copper there is something that looks like an old rune. Though I would need a book about old runes to say what it means. The next rune is under the symbol for lead. So those two metals have an important meaning.

"The sequence of the elements is the same as the planets of our solar system. Quicksilver is Mercury, copper is Venus, silver is the moon, iron is Mars, tin is Jupiter and lead is Saturn. As the note is ripped after that, I guess there were the elements for Neptune and Pluto following. If you can find out which rune means what you should find the haul you spoke about somewhere like a planetarium either at the Venus or the Saturn." Harry explained.

"Very good. That was the one place we didn't really look. Now you will come with us and be a good boy. After all, we don't want that the police arrest us. And if you don't cooperate, we will blow up the museum with all the hostages, including those kids you were trying to protect." The man said.

Harry nodded. Though he had a plan. He just needed to wait until he was in a good position and that gun not pointed at him. Finally the man pointed his gun away from Harry and he used that short moment to shoot a stunner at the man wordlessly. The woman was shocked to see her partner fall down like that. As Harry had been directly in front of the man, he had hit from a real short distance and the red light of the spell hadn't been visible. Harry quickly kicked her gun from her hand and caught it.

"End of the hostage taking. You are going to follow me outside to get the police. And then you can also tell them just why you only stole red precious stones." Harry said. "Put your hands above your head and leave them there."

The woman looked angry, but followed the commands. Harry took a copy of the detective boys badge from his pocket and activated it.

"Conan, tell the police they can come inside. I have overwhelmed the two criminals." He said.

"Understood, Harry, I will tell Inspector Megure." Conan answered.

"How did that brat get outside?" The woman asked disbelievingly.

"My cousin is a smart child. I guess he found an emergency exit and got the rest of your hostages out of there." Harry said.

"But the only door here has to be opened by a code. How would he have known that without an employee of the museum?" She asked.

"You forget that those codes are mostly three numbers for exiting the museum and if the door is used regularly, the numbers will be bleached out somewhat. Guessing the combination isn't that hard after that. There are only a limited number of combinations with the known numbers. Six to be precise. Not that hard to guess even for a primary school student." Harry said.

* * *

><p>The two thieves and hostage takers were arrested and Harry informed the police about the meaning of the riddle and that it was the clue to where the boss of the two thieves had hidden the haul from their last big theft.<p>

They went to the planetarium the boss had worked at and searched the Venus. They found a hidden compartment in the planet where a sack with jewels that were probably worth several hundred million yen was stored. When Harry informed them about a trap at Saturn, they also took care to disable it.

In the following questioning the two said they had stolen red jewels all the time because the boss had always said the key to the treasure was the flaming stone which they thought was meant to be the colour red.

Harry snorted hearing that. That was something an astrology freak would come up with.

"Do you know what that clue means, Harrison?" Inspector Megure asked.

"Yes, I do. Venus isn't only a planet, but was also known as the Roman goddess of love. You associate with love the colour red and fire. If they had not taken that hint to mean a jewel, they might have got the solution earlier. Additionally the temperature on Venus is much higher than on Earth. So calling it a flaming stone makes sense. If they had considered that their boss was big on Astrology they could have figured it out on their own." Harry said.

Megure nodded. He was just glad that this case didn't cost anybody his life.

* * *

><p><strong>That's it for today. I hope you liked it.<strong>


	12. Night Baron I

**Hi, here is the next chapter. I hope you like it. Happy reading.**

* * *

><p><strong>Night Baron Part I<strong>

"Are you sure that this is a good idea, Sirius?" Harry asked.

"Of course it is. You will see, a weekend at the beaches of Izu and you will feel a lot better, Harry." Sirius assured his godson while he drove his car into the garage of the Princess Hotel.

"This isn't just so you can watch girls in bikinis?" Harry asked suspiciously.

"No, this is so you and I can bask in the sun, relax for three days and let everything behind. As Shinichi is on a trip with Ran and Kogoro, this is the perfect opportunity to just have a short vacation. God knows that you are drawn into too many criminal cases recently." Sirius gave Harry a pointed look while he waited for the guard to tell him the number of the parking lot he had rented for the stay.

That much was true. Harry had solved many cases for the police, some with Shinichi, and some without him. And both he and Sirius had played therapist for Shinichi after his return from the Tsukikage Island. He had solved the case and found the murderer, but with his deductions he had more or less driven the man into suicide in the flames. He had needed some talks with them as he couldn't speak about it with Kogoro or Agasa as the first couldn't know what Shinichi had done and the second had no experience with being responsible that somebody died.

They had managed to put Shinichi's problem with dealing with the death of Seiji Asou into perspective. Shinichi had been grateful for their counsel. While Shinichi may have been the one to expose the murderer it had been Asou's decision to take his own life. And as Shinichi depended on Kogoro in his sleeping form to solve most of his cases, there had been nothing that he could have done, he had tried to save the murderer but he had chosen death over his guilt.

It had been massively beneficial that Harry could perfectly relate to Shinichi. He had told his friend about the death of Cedric Diggory. He had proposed to take the Cup together to be fair about it because Cedric didn't want to take it for himself. It had led to Cedric being murdered by Pettigrew. He had fought long with himself to accept that it hadn't been his fault, because he couldn't have known that taking the Cup together would take them both to Voldemort. It had been Voldemort, Pettigrew and Crouch Jr. that were responsible for Cedric's death.

"Okay, Sirius, I give up. I will do my best to just enjoy the vacation. From what I have heard Izu is really nice this time of the year." Harry relented.

"That's the spirit!" Sirius cheered.

Harry shook his head. For all the maturity Sirius had gained, sometimes he still behaved like a big child.

* * *

><p>Back at Hogwarts things didn't go the way Dumbledore wanted them to go. He was unable to find any more horcruxes, his time was running out, the damn Potter brat still hadn't been found by the members of the Order and Severus had reported that the Malfoy brat had been punished horribly for the failure of getting the Death Eaters into the castle for an attack on him. While the last part would normally have been positive, he had planned to secure Severus' position within the Death Eaters by letting him kill him.<p>

He knew that Draco Malfoy was unable to kill. The boy, while brainwashed by his parents to believe in pureblood supremacy, didn't have the nerves to kill somebody. Normally he would have used that to sway the boy to the light side, but he didn't think he would get a good opportunity to do so now.

He needed to get the Potter brat back. He was important for his future plans. Normally he would have given the boy hints of the horcruxes with his pensieve this year and manipulated him into a wild goose chase over the whole island to find them. He was sure that they were all hidden here as there had been no trace of them in Albania where Tom had been rumoured to be hidden all those years. He more or less knew what the horcruxes were. He had destroyed the Gaunt ring; the diary had been destroyed four years ago by Harry.

Then there was Nagini the snake, Hufflepuff's cup, Slytherin's locket, something of Ravenclaw or Gryffindor, most probably Ravenclaw as the only artefact of Gryffindor was the sword, which was imbedded with basilisk venom now and therefore couldn't be a horcrux and last Harry's scar. That was the main reason he had decided to use the boy to kill Tom once and for all.

The prophecy he had told Harry was as fake as it could be. It had been a favourable coincidence that the recording of the prophecy that the Department of Mysteries had had been smashed during the stupid exploration of Potter and his friends. Of course it would have happened in any case as he had instructed Ron, Hermione and Ginny to destroy it if Harry ever got it. He couldn't risk the true prophecy coming out. It would destroy his carefully laid plans.

Sadly the normal tracking methods didn't work so far. Normally he would have used his connections with the members of the ICW to find out if Harry had taken tests in one of their Ministries and then taken the boy back under his control. But he didn't get anything. None of the European Ministries had any clue where the boy might be. The only time he would certainly find him was when he sat for the NEWTs and they were still one year away. Far too late for his needs.

He might have to speed his ritual preparations up now. He couldn't risk dying before he had managed to defeat Tom. He was the one who should be the hero once again. After all he had been the one to free Europe from Grindelwald. It was his right to be the only one to defeat Voldemort. In 1980 he had built a trap for Tom, using Sybil Trelawney's job interview to plant the seed of doubt in Tom's mind.

After all, no tyrant would pass up the chance to kill the one destined to vanquish him. The truth was another story. The prophecy didn't speak of one saviour, it spoke of two. And it hadn't been at the Hog's Head where the real Prophecy had been made but in his office at Hogwarts. The one at his brother's bar had been staged as they knew that Severus Snape was going to be there that evening.

He pulled the memory of the true prophecy from his head to look at it again. Perhaps he could find a clue on Harry's whereabouts from it. It had been years since he had seen it last. He put it into his pensieve and put his head inside.

_Sybil Trelawney sat in a comfy chair Dumbledore had conjured for the interview. He didn't really want to continue the Divination classes but the board had decided he had to interview potential applicants. He could only drop a subject if there was no suitable teacher available. And it only held true for some classes. Subjects like Transfiguration, Charms and Defence were mandatory. Suddenly, after writing the young woman of as a fraud, she fell into a trance._

"_The saviours of the wizarding world will come … born with the power to vanquish the dark Lords … born on two sides of the world … one born to those who thrice defied the dark Lord veiled by darkness… born as the seventh month dies … one born to the brightest mind and the magical actress … born in the middle of spring … and both will be betrayed by the dark Lord hidden in light … but together they will unite what was forcefully divided … guided by the totem of death … they will bring down the power of the dark Lords… born on two sides of the world."_

He had pondered long who could have been the subject of the prophecy. He finally narrowed the first child down to either Harry Potter or Neville Longbottom. Only their parents had defied Tom, who was the only one the description of the dark Lord living in darkness could be about, three times and both Alice and Lily were expecting for their children to be born late July or early August.

He had waited which child would meet the requirements but both had been born only a few hours apart. Neville late on July 30th and Harry early on July 31st. He had discretely done power measures of both boys while visiting their parents and come up with Harry Potter being the more powerful child. Quite surprising considering that Neville was a pureblood and Harry a halfblood.

But then again he had been really happy that James had married Lily, therefore bringing fresh blood into the old Potter line, making it more powerful. He had known since the early forties that inbreeding led to reduced magical abilities. He was more than happy to let his enemies destroy their magical potential but he needed powerful followers so he had let the marauders get away with some things at school he would normally have punished.

But getting the three brightest and most powerful students of their generation on his side had been more important than a bit of injustice. And they had followed his course blindly. They had risked their lives for his goals like good little puppets. Then Lily and James were expecting a child and he knew it would be powerful. Fresh blood in a family that was loyal to him. Much like the Weasleys. Molly and Arthur were absolutely loyal to him and he had known that they weren't closely related so that their children most probably would be powerful as well.

After he had determined that the one child with the power the prophecy spoke of was Harry Potter, he had searched for the other one on the other side of the world. Thankfully his position as the Supreme Mugwump of the ICW had enabled him to look for a child that met the description. It had taken a long while but finally he had found the second child in Shinichi Kudo. His father, Yusaku was a brilliant author that helped the muggle aurors a lot with their criminal cases. His mother Yukiko was a witch and an actress. His birthday was May 4th, therefore in the middle of spring. He fit the description. And his potential was immense. He was just a bit behind in raw power than Harry.

While with the Potters he couldn't do anything to stop the danger to himself, he could bind the magic of Shinichi. He knew the child would die once he turned seventeen, but he was a sacrifice that had to be made for the Greater Good. After all, only he, Albus Dumbledore, could lead Great Britain and the world into the right direction. Nobody else could be allowed to steal his limelight. He didn't need the post of Minister. It was too volatile to public opinion. But the man who educated all children of Great Britain was much better suited to lead from the shadows. And all Ministers always came to him to ask for his opinion and advice anyway.

And if they grew out of the habit to include him in the process of making important decisions, he was politically powerful enough to deal with them. Fudge had found out that bit painfully enough. Had he listened to his advice after Voldemort had got back his body, he could have stayed in office for longer. But Fudge had decided to listen to Lucius Malfoy and the voice of greed. You never did that openly, you did it cunningly. He had gathered a nice amount of wealth through that method. A few hints to his followers, letting them run into their demise and some galleons were donated to his course every time. And if not, faking a will was not terribly hard with the Ministry not checking them thoroughly. Only if the goblins were included things got complicated.

What he didn't understand was the part with the totem of death. He couldn't think of anything that would be able to lead the boys and be a totem of death. After all, all death related creatures were unable of speech.

He looked at the calendar. By now the second boy had to have died. Well, he never really cared what would happen to him as long as he didn't pose a threat to him and his position.

* * *

><p>Harry sat in the restaurant of the Princess Hotel. He had massively enjoyed the day on the beach. Nobody had bothered him. Here, in this province of Japan, he wasn't that well known that people would recognize him. It was nice to be anonymous. Sirius was at the restroom at the moment. Both had spent the whole day relaxing at the beach. Sirius had been right; he had needed a weekend away from everything.<p>

Then suddenly he saw something falling from above. He first thought somebody must have lost something and it had been blown from one of the balconies of the hotel. Then he was shocked. A person was falling. He tried immobilizing but he was too late. The person fell onto the sword of the statue that was in the restaurant. Many people around him began screaming.

"Call the police!" He yelled at a waitress.

She nodded and ran inside to call for the police. Harry put on a pair of secretly conjured gloves. Obviously he couldn't have one weekend without a case.

Soon he heard the sirens of the police cars. The leading inspector organized the barrier for those around. He was a tall man with curly short hair. He was wearing a suit with a tie. Harry waited until the corpse was taken from the statue. He had known that there would be nothing he could do for the man that had fallen onto the statue the moment he impacted. No healer would have been able to help. But he could make sure to find out what had happened. While the policemen were taking positions and the leading inspector gave orders for them to interview witnesses, Harry began inspecting the corpse. He found that the tie had been bound in a weird way. He took of the mask the man was wearing.

He didn't recognize the man.

"Hey, what are you doing?" The inspector asked irritated.

"Inspecting the corpse, Inspector." Harry answered calmly.

"Mr Ebara!" They suddenly heard from behind.

A voice Harry knew very well. He looked around and saw Ran Mori, his classmate. That meant Shinichi was also here.

"You know the man?" The inspector asked.

"Yes, he is participant in the same mystery tour we are participating in, Inspector Yokomizo." Ran explained.

'That means Shinichi will surely have some important information for me.' Harry thought.

"Well, then your father is also here?" The now identified Inspector Yokomizo asked.

One of the women watching the scene answered he was at the pub on the first floor.

"Okay, we will look for him. But I still want you to leave my crime scene. Who are you by the way?" Yokomizo demanded to know from Harry.

"I am Harrison Black, a detective." Harry introduced himself.

"Wait, I have heard that name before." Yokomizo said.

"He is one of the famous high school detectives of Tokyo, Inspector." One of the policemen informed him. "They call him 'The Hawk'. He and another high school detective, Shinichi Kudo, are called the saviours of the Japanese police."

"That's great; he can assist us with the investigation." Yokomizo said happily.

With two master detectives the case would be solved easily.

* * *

><p>They found Kogoro Mori sleeping at the bar. After a violent wake-up courtesy of Ran and Conan because of another embarrassing scene the pervert made, he came with them to help with the investigations. They had to break the door open as it was locked with a bolt from the inside. They found the clothes Mr Ebara had worn that evening on the floor together with the key for the door.<p>

Kogoro concluded, as Mr Ebara had been really drunk, he had just let it fall onto the pile before he tried to frighten one of the other participants in the mystery tour in the disguise of the Night Baron. In his drunken state, he had an accident trying to climb onto the balcony below. A white glove that was missing from the costume of the Night Baron and was stock at the balcony indicated that theory might be true.

"I don't know; why would anybody try to climb to another balcony without the help of a rope?" Conan asked, writing his observations into his notebook. "And his key to the room was here as well, even if he would have managed to climb into the room below, how would he have been able to get back into his room?"

Kogoro knocked Conan over the head. Conan's fountain pen was knocked down by this.

"Cheeky brat, he was too drunk to even know what he was doing. You have seen him in the restaurant as well." Kogoro reprimanded him.

Harry was quietly listening and watching. He knew there was more to it. The tie had been bound in a weird way. Not the way one would normally bind a tie. But he needed more information to find out the truth. He just knew that this was probably no accident.

"Hey, Harry, what do you think?" Conan asked quietly.

"That you should try to keep out of Mori's way if you cherish your head. But I think you are referring to the case. I don't think this was just an accident. His tie was strange. Not as if he did it himself. But I can't exclude the possibility he was just eccentric. If I had a sample how he normally did his tie I would be able to say more." Harry answered.

"You can compare. One of the waitresses in the restaurant gave me his tie. Here it is." Conan said, giving Harry the tie.

"It's different." Harry immediately spotted.

"I need to see the corpse once more. Perhaps there are other things that are strange as well. I need evidence that this is a murder case to make them investigate more thoroughly." Harry said.

Conan nodded and followed Harry downstairs. When they got to the corpse, Kogoro was also inspecting it. He deducted that it had to be a tragic accident. The comments from the other participants of the tour were also uneventful.

When Mori had stood up, Harry looked over the clothes of the man. Both he and Shinichi were used to looking for details. And he found another one. The belt was placed the wrong way.

"Mr Mori, Inspector Yokomizo, I don't think that this was an accident." Harry announced.

"What are you talking about?" Mori asked annoyed that he again had to deal with a high school detective. As if Kudo wasn't enough of a bother.

"There are two things that are not normal about the way Mr Ebara's clothes are. His tie is done strangely; Conan gave me the tie he had worn in the restaurant before, a waitress had asked him to give it back to Mr Ebara before. It is done another way. And also his belt is placed the wrong way. This means that somebody else clothed him and pushed him from the balcony. This wasn't an accident, this was murder and the murderer is still here." Harry stated, shocking those present with his conclusion.

* * *

><p>Sirius, who was between the other guests at the restaurant, looked at the scene and was proud how Harry was taking charge of the investigation. He had never seen his godson at a crime scene before and was very interested how he would go on about solving the case. It was just a shame that their holiday was disturbed by another case. They were all told to keep ready to be interrogated by the police. Standard procedure really.<p>

* * *

><p>Harry was listening to all the participants of the mystery tour. Some of them had a good alibi, like Mr Kaneshiro, the blind old man and his secretary Shizue. They had been at the restaurant and if it could be confirmed it would be proof that they didn't murder Ebara. But one of the old man's comments was weird. Well, it didn't have anything to do with the murder from what he could conclude.<p>

Mrs Kamijo was more or less flirting with Kogoro for her alibi, which was not that strong as Mori had been passed out at the bar for some time, which Conan pointed out. Really, it was no wonder that Ran's mother had left the philanderer. Mr Konno had only used his laptop in his room, not really an alibi; Miss Sayama had watched TV and had no alibi. The most interesting part was that Mr Maeda had been with Ran and Conan, obviously flirting a bit with Ran, which hadn't sat right with Shinichi of course. Really, the guy was so obvious in his jealousy, that Harry wondered how Shinichi had managed to fool Ran for so long.

Okay, there had been a close call early on when Ran saw too many coincidences that pointed to Conan being Shinichi when Conan had been a bit too obvious in giving hints to Kogoro. Additionally she had observed him looking through the reports at the hospital where they had been for the case that Kogoro had been hired for. But thanks to a call he had made with Shinichi's voice imitation bow tie they had managed to deceive her again.

* * *

><p>Harry was pondering about the statements the suspects had given. Shinichi was with Ran and Miss Sayama at the moment. They would bring Miss Sayama to her room and then Ran would probably try to get Conan to sleep. It wouldn't work of course. Shinichi would never interrupt an on-going investigation.<p>

Ran, Miss Sayama and Conan just came back into the room looking as if they had seen a ghost..

"What? The Baron is going around again?" Mori shouted.

"Yes, when the escalator opened, he suddenly stood there in front of us. We were on the 19th floor where our rooms are." Conan reported agitated.

"Then, why didn't you catch him? Ran, you were also there, weren't you?" Mori asked.

"Sorry, I was just too surprised." Ran apologized.

Two policemen came into the room; one was supporting the other, who seemed to be hurt.

"Inspector Yokomizo." The one supporting the other called.

"We found him collapsed in the room where the corpse is kept." He reported. "It appears somebody knocked him down."

"What about the corpse?" Yokomizo asked.

"That is still there, but the costume of the Night Baron is missing."

"The costume?" Mori asked.

"Inspector Yokomizo, the Baron drifts in the pool." A third policeman who just arrived shouted.

Harry ran to the pool immediately. This was a mystery. Why would anybody risk stealing the costume? Why would he attack Ran, Conan and Miss Sayama? And why then discard the costume in the pool? By stealing the costume he risked to be discovered. Next to him he saw Conan running.

"We need to talk in private when we have seen what has happened at the pool." Harry said quietly.

Conan just nodded.

They arrived at the pool and soon had an image what had happened. It seemed the culprit had thrown the costume from the balcony he had used to push Conan from earlier that day. Soon after both boys were using one of the offices for talking.

"Please tell me everything you know about the participants of the tour and the tour itself. For now a rough overview will suffice. We need to inspect the locations of the different rooms too." Harry asked.

"Agreed, Harry. Well, everything started with Professor Agasa and his friend winning this trip. Then the granddaughter of the other Professor got ill and we were asked to substitute for them. The organizer of the tour used the identity of the Night Baron. It originates from a mystery novel my father wrote. Then I called the Professor some time ago after I was pushed from the balcony. He told me that the prize of the tour was a computer program and the second half of the costs for the weekend here. After talking with Mr Kaneshiro I found out that it probably was a computer virus by the name Night Baron.

"Ebara was a hacker, so somebody could have been his victim and wanted revenge. We need to find out how the culprit could have constructed a locked room in Ebara's room. The report from the autopsy isn't here yet and it will take some time until it will be done. So we don't know if he was drugged before he died." Conan old Harry.

"Well, we will have to wait and use the time to search all the rooms with the police. Try to keep your observations for you. We both know Mori is mostly incapable of solving a case, but with his reputation he can get us into the suspects' rooms." Harry reminded Shinichi.

"I know it is just hard. I don't know how he managed to be relatively good at being a policeman." Conan said.

"I don't know either; perhaps something happened that changed him. The long time he lived alone probably didn't do much for his abilities either." Harry pondered.

"By the way, we need to set the stage for the sleeping Kogoro show once we have solved the case." Conan said.

"Yeah, the police would get suspicious if Mori was here and I solved the case on my own. It would look better if I was known to cooperate with him. It would also make it easier for you to stay under the radar for a longer time." Harry mentioned.

"True. Well, first we need to find the murderer, and then we can think about staging the solving presentation." Conan agreed.

Both left to join the inspector searching all the participants' rooms.

* * *

><p>Some hours later they had searched all the rooms. They had also got some very interesting information about the participants. Harry had Conan write all the clues and specifics of the rooms down in his notebook while he conducted questions to the suspects. It was really a relief for Conan that he didn't have to rely on Mori to ask the important questions. And with Harry directing all attention to him, Conan could look around undetected.<p>

They got some interesting statements.

Mr Kaneshiro told them about Mr Konno's supposed problems with his employer, a bank, where he was said to have manipulated the computer. Mr Konno meanwhile told them that none of them would hate the Baron more than Kaneshiro because his son had been killed by the virus. He also revealed that Mrs Kamijo and Mr Ebara had been married but had divorced three years ago.

Really, what that man knew. Mrs Kamijo confirmed that she had once been married to Ebara, but had divorced him because he was a hacker, because everybody working in computer business hated hackers.

Then they found out that two persons had sleeping pills in their luggage, Miss Sayama and Mrs Kamijo. From Mrs Kamijo they found out that Miss Sayama's little brother had once had a small software company. So all participants were connected to computers and might have had a grudge against Ebara or a motive to want the supposed program Night Baron.

At the moment they were wandering the floors, pondering about the statements of the suspects. They came upon two policemen of the department for securing evidence. They were inspecting and collecting the remains of the cut bolt of the door. They were talking about there being something strange on the bolt.

"May I see the bolt?" Harry asked politely.

Both looked at him and wanted to know what he had to do with the investigation.

"Oh sorry, I thought Inspector Yokomizo had informed all of you about my involvement in the case. I am Harrison Black, a detective; I am helping with the investigation." He said.

"Ah yes, Inspector Yokomizo informed us about you, a famous high school detective, helping. We just didn't know how you looked like." One of the two said.

"No problem. Now would you please show me what you have found?" Harry asked.

"Of course."

Harry was shown the part of the bolt.

"That's sellotape." Conan said.

"You are right. But that means…" Harry realized and Conan nodded, having realized the same thing.

They needed to test their theory, but that could be easily accomplished at Harry's room.

* * *

><p><strong>And cut. The second part will be up soon. Until then.<strong>


	13. Night Baron II

**Hi, here is part two of the Night Baron Arc. Happy reading and thanks to those that left reviews.**

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><p><strong>Night Baron Part II<strong>

Harry went into the room, where Sirius waited.

"Hey, Harry, how is the case coming along?" He asked.

"We think we have found out the trick the murderer used to make the victim's room look like a locked room. We are about to test it with our door, Sirius." Harry answered.

"So I guess Conan is outside the door?" He asked.

"Yes. He is keeping watch that nobody is coming. I just need to get some things. You will now see what we think the trick is." Harry informed Sirius.

"Okay, I am curious."

Harry took a roll of sellotape from the desk drawer and opened the door. Sirius watched Harry and Conan put a piece of sellotape on the bolt of the door and then Conan stayed inside while Harry closed the door. Harry pulled at the sellotape and the bolt fell into position to lock the door from the inside. Harry pulled the sellotape from the bolt and had therefore successfully locked the room from the outside but made it look like it had been done from the inside.

"Very smart. With that trick the murderer would have been able to make it look like the room had been locked by Ebara from the inside, but in reality it had been done from the outside after the murderer pushed Ebara from his balcony." Sirius said, realizing what the trick meant.

"It seems like that. We need to find out more, let's get down to the crime scene again, Shinichi." Harry said.

Both boys left the room, walking down the corridor to the escalator. There they met with the two policemen that had found the sellotape on the bolt.

The two policemen were talking while Harry and Shinichi were thinking who could have commit the crime, as with the discovered trick all the suspects would have been able to do it.

"Did you hear about Misawa?" One of the policemen asked his colleague.

"Yes, he was knocked out by the culprit while he was guarding the corpse, wasn't he?" The other one answered.

"But, isn't Misawa a really good karate fighter?"

"Yes, he is. He is the strongest at our station."

Harry and Shinichi perked up, that was interesting news.

"It might be that the culprit surprised him, but it is still strange." The policeman said.

Harry and Shinichi looked at each other. There was one of the suspects who now was more suspicious than the others.

After some questions they had confirmed that only Satoru Maeda, the Japanese Karate champion would have been able to do it.

Shinichi quickly informed Harry about his observations from the attack of the Night Baron in the elevator that he had seen. Ran had attacked the Baron but he had blocked her kick. They both realized that Ran and Akiko Sayama had both been unable to follow the Baron because they had identified their attacker.

Akiko was his fiancé, so she wouldn't say anything and Ran admired him for his karate abilities.

* * *

><p>They followed the two policemen, who were on their way to the interrogation room, to find out if any new information had come up. Inspector Yokomizo informed them that they didn't find out anything new since Harry and Conan had left.<p>

"I'm puzzled how the culprit escaped from the room. After all, with the strong wind that is blowing here, it would be crazy to climb to another room from the balcony." He said.

"Inspector, we have found the solution to that riddle." Harry said.

"What, how did he do it?" Yokomizo asked.

Harry motioned the policeman they had accompanied to the room over. He took the bolt in its plastic bag out and showed both Yokomizo and Mori the little piece of sellotape on it.

"This is the bolt of the door of Mr Ebara's room. Conan and I have already tested if we were right about the trick and Conan will demonstrate it for you." Harry said.

Conan was already outside of the room and knocked on the door. Yokomizo opened the door, only to find the bolt in locked position.

"Who locked the bolt at the door?" He asked the people on the room.

"Nobody did, Inspector Yokomizo, that was me." Conan answered.

Yokomizo looked at Conan, then at Harry.

"I told you he would demonstrate the trick." Harry replied grinning.

"Conan, why don't you show them how you did it?" Harry asked.

"Sure thing. You see, Inspector, all I need to do it is this sellotape." Conan showed Yokomizo the tape in his hands.

"I just have to cut the sellotape at the right length, glue it together with enough sticking surface left for the bar. Then I position the bolt vertically to the door and stick the free part of the sellotape to the bolt, making sure it sticks properly.

The next step is closing the door. Now I only need to pull at the sellotape ant the bolt is locked. After that I pull the sellotape off and all evidence of the trick is gone." Conan declared happily.

"Of course, that way the culprit could kill Ebara and escape afterwards. Even if it didn't work the first time, he could use the key to check if it worked properly and if it didn't repeat it. But it had worked and while checking the bolt he couldn't see the spot on the bolt where the sellotape piece remained."

"Correct, Inspector Yokomizo; and the only reason the clothes of the victim were placed close to the door at the floor was to distract anybody from the location of the key, which had been thrown through the door." Harry explained while opening the door and letting Conan back inside.

"So the culprit took the key from Ebara, put him into the costume of the Baron and pushed him from the balcony. He left the room and used the trick to lock the bar, making everything look like it had been Ebara who did it. With the room looking like it had been locked from the inside, everybody would assume it was an accident. Without the sellotape and the strange way some of his clothes looked, like the tie and the belt, nobody would have found out and the culprit would have got away." Yokomizo summarized.

"Didn't the key also lie on the heap of clothes in the room?" Conan pondered loudly.

"Of course, after he had assured that the trick had worked like he had planned, he threw the key through the opening of the door and fled. The clothes in the heap close to the door were aiding the assumption that Ebara just took off all his clothes and let them lie there without caring. If only the key had been there, it would have been more suspicious." Yokomizo said.

While Kogoro glared a bit at Harry and Conan for stealing the show, Yokomizo narrated the alibis of the six suspects.

"Mr Maeda said he was in the vantage lounge with Ran and Conan, Miss Sayama was watching TV in her room, Mr Konno was reading E-mails in his room and Mrs Kamijo was at the bar with Mr Mori. Lastly Mr Kaneshiro and his secretary were at the restaurant when the corpse fell down."

When he was finished Conan piped up.

"Miss Sayama's alibi can be proven; she said she called the reception for a wake-up call." He told them.

* * *

><p>They went to the reception and the concierge confirmed the call. Inspector Yokomizo also asked for the confirmation about Mr Konno's use of his laptop and this was also confirmed.<p>

Harry listened to Mori and Yokomizo wondering why the costume of the Baron had been taken. Mori obviously didn't think things through once again. Harry wished he would stop to sprout nonsense.

"We should also check Mrs Kamijo's alibi." Conan said reading from his notebook.

Mori seemed annoyed and Harry looked sternly at Conan. While he could understand the urge to get the case solved, he knew that he couldn't be the centre of attention.

* * *

><p>The following interviews with employees of the hotel were very interesting. Obviously Mrs Kamijo had put a drug into Mori's drink, which the bartender had seen. The waitress at the restaurant confirmed that Mr Kaneshiro and his secretary had been at the restaurant when the victim fell down. From eliminating the one with alibis there were only two suspects left.<p>

"We are down to Konno and Maeda." Harry quietly said.

"Yes, and with the karate abilities to take into account, it has to have been Maeda." Conan answered.

"Conan, Harry!" They suddenly heard Ran's voice.

"What's the matter, Ran?" Harry asked.

"I need to speak with Dad, I found Satoru's alibi." She announced breathing hard.

"What?" Both boys asked surprised.

"Directly after he said good-bye to me and Conan, he signed some autographs for fans he met. He even wrote down the time, it was 10.03 and both checked the time on their watches, so he can't have been it."

"Why don't you fetch the two?" Harry asked.

"I will go right away." She answered and ran back into the hotel.

"This narrows it down to Konno, but something is strange." Harry pondered.

"I know what you mean, why would he keep the fact that he has an ironclad alibi a secret?" Conan asked.

"There has to be some reason why he didn't tell it. But what could that be?" Harry said.

Both were walking in front of the hotel near the statue. The wind had picked up and was blowing strongly. Conan spotted something on the floor.

"That's my fountain pen that I lost when Kogoro hit me on the head." Conan said.

The ink had flown out of the pen and it was obviously broken beyond normal repair.

"I will take care of it once we are out of view of others." Harry assured him.

Conan meanwhile was looking at the statue in the distance. Something was strange.

"Harry, why would my pen be here, at least ten meters away from the statue that Ebara landed upon, if the fell from the same room?" He asked.

"Perhaps the wind. The pen weighs a lot less than a man. But we should ask the waitress about the wind. Normally the spot your pen landed shouldn't have been that far away from the statue" Harry pondered.

Both boys wandered over to the waitress.

"Excuse me, I have a question." Harry spoke to her.

"Yes?" She answered.

"When the man fell down, did the wind blow then?"

"Yes, it was quite strong. You have to know the wind blows without interruption at night here. The direction is from left to right if you stand in front of the statue. This region is famous for its strong wind. It is a lot stronger up there of course." She said pointing up the hotel.

Both boys were in thoughts. Then they looked at each other. They had it.

"That's it. The wind is the deciding factor to solve this case." Conan said. Only in one room there was no wind when I wrote my notes."

"So you mean, the culprit didn't close the room after he pushed Ebara down, he pushed him down after he closed the room. Ingenious. Even if somebody found the trick, the culprit would have been safe because he could prove to have been at his own room at the time of the murder. With everybody assuming Ebara was thrown from his own room, he would have been out of suspicion. Even Maeda's behaviour now makes sense." Harry concluded.

Suddenly there was a shout from Mori and he ordered a group of Policemen to call everybody there.

"Quick, we have to prevent him from sprouting his nonsense of deduction." Harry said, Conan nodded and went into position to knock Mori out with his tranquilliser gun in his watch.

Harry was running after the policemen Mori had asked to call everybody.

"Please wait; I need a favour for the presentation of the solution to the case." He called out.

"You are Harrison Black, right?" One policeman asked.

"Yes, Mr Mori forgot that we wanted to show the trick of the culprit. We need the preparations that are written on this paper to be done for us. Once you are done, please give us a visible sign." He said.

"Okay, I will do it." The policeman said.

* * *

><p>Sirius heard the commotion on his floor when the policemen fetched Mr Kaneshiro and his secretary who were on the same floor as he and Harry were on. He grinned. It seemed it was time to watch his godson in action. He left the room and followed the policemen to the escalator.<p>

"What are you doing here?" One of them asked.

"I heard the commotion and concluded the case was to be solved. I wanted to see my nephew in action as I normally don't get to see him solving criminal cases." Sirius answered.

"Your nephew?" Another policeman replied.

"Harrison Black, my name is Simon Black and I am his uncle." He explained.

"Oh, of course you can watch." He said.

* * *

><p>Conan stood in position to send Mori sleeping. Harry nodded as he saw the suspects assembling at one of the tables. Conan aimed and shot. Mori began tumbling and dropped into a sitting position at one of the tables. It would be a lot easier this way.<p>

"Thank you for coming. Harrison and I will now explain to all of you how the murder of Tokio Ebara has been committed. The culprit has managed to deceive us for a long time and we have wondered about the following points. First, how did the culprit escape out of the locked room of Ebara? This has been solved by Harrison and Conan, who have already presented the trick to me and Inspector Yokomizo earlier. So we can definitely rule out an accident, which was the intention of the murderer.

"The culprit clothed the drunken and drugged Ebara in the costume of the Night Baron and pushed him from his room into his death, hoping to have everything look like an accident. Now we already confirmed that it has been murder, so I will summarize each of your alibis."

Harry was looking up. While Conan kept the attention of all the assembled suspects, he hoped that the policemen would soon be ready to start the demonstration.

Conan with Mori's voice stated each alibi around the time of the murder.

"The next thing that happened was the appearance of the Baron in front of Ran, Miss Sayama and Conan. This has been confusing for our investigations as it didn't make sense. Why would the Night Baron appear if he wanted to make it look like Ebara was the Baron and everything was an accident?"

Now Harry took over.

"The reason for this act was to draw off the attention from the real culprit. The fake Baron was none other than Satoru Maeda." Harry announced. "The policeman that guarded the dead Ebara was an expert karate fighter and only a stronger and more experienced fighter could have succeeded in knocking him out effortlessly. Additionally, Ran Mori, who was in the elevator and attacked the Baron with a karate kick, was deflected skilfully. You wouldn't know that, but she won the High-School karate tournament for girls this year and is a difficult opponent. Any non-karate fighter wouldn't have a chance. Only Mr Maeda would be able to do so. Now, normally this would put him into position to be our main suspect for the crime, but thanks to Ran Mori, who found witnesses of his alibi, we know that he was with fans of his at 10:03. So he can't have murdered Ebara. The reason why he stole the costume and pretended to be the Baron will be explained later." Harry told them, with Maeda looking annoyed and resigned.

Ran arrived with her two witnesses who promptly confirmed Maeda's alibi. Finally the sign was given from above.

"Now, before I reveal the identity of the culprit, I ask you all to step away from the statue as Harrison has asked some of Inspector Yokomizo's men to prepare a demonstration of the murder so we can all see it with our own eyes." Mori announced.

The others were looking confused.

"What have you planned?" Yokomizo asked.

"Look at the higher floors, Inspector, and everything will become clear." Harry said and raised his arm.

"This experiment will bring light into the dark and show the truth of this crime." He stated.

Suddenly white forms appeared above them. They crashed onto the floor with loud thumps. Soon they were identified as bedrolls with weights inside of them. Each had a bed sheet tied around it.

"I asked your men to thrown them down from the rooms of all the suspects. You can see that the room numbers are written on each of those dummies." Harry explained.

"Wait a moment. Number 2101 has been Ebara's room. Why didn't it land on the statue? The wind can't have been strong enough to drift the body over here, can it?" Yokomizo asked.

"Yes, it can be. And from the statement the waitress gave us, we know that at the time of the murder the wind was even stronger than now. Every night the wind blows from left to right of the statue. And the higher you get, the stronger the wind." Harry said.

"Additionally, with the costume of the Baron, which includes a cape, the body has been especially prone to being caught by the wind and blown off further." Conan added. "This means, it is not explainable how he could have landed on the statue if he really fell from his room. The same is true for the dummy from Mr Kaneshiro's room 2001."

Yokomizo realized the trick of the culprit.

"I see, we have been deceived. With the glove at the balcony and the trick to lock the room, we have been made believe that Ebara's room was the crime scene. It wasn't only to disguise the murder as an accident but also to have us think of a wrong crime scene."

"Exactly. The murderer didn't lock the room after he committed the crime, but before he did it. The real crime he committed from his own room." Conan stated with Mori's voice.

Yokomizo ran towards the statue.

"That means the dummies near the statue are suspicious." He said, checking the room numbers on those dummies.

"Numbers 2002 and 2102, the rooms of Mr Konno and Mrs Kamijo." He said, then he looked up at the statue. There was the dummy from room 1901, the room of Miss Sayama and Mr Maeda.

"That is the room of Miss Sayama, isn't it?" Yokomizo asked.

"That must be coincidence." Ran said "There are more dummies close to the statue after all, Akiko's just happened to get a lucky blow to land on top of the statue."

Conan interrupted.

"The fact that it was speared was surely a coincidence, but that it landed close to the statue wasn't. Additionally Mrs Kamijo and Mr Konno can't be the culprit. The windows of their rooms lie around the corner of Mr Ebara's room. From the point of collision, it would have been obvious that Ebara couldn't have fallen from his room." Conan stated.

"Miss Sayama's room instead is directly under the balcony of Mr Ebara's room. Even if we now assumed the body would have been subject to the wind and landed on the statue coincidentally…" Yokomizo pondered.

"It will be obvious that it can't have been a coincidence for exactly that reason." Conan finished the thought process.

"Why?" Yokomizo asked wondering.

"Because there is only one place directly underneath the balcony of the victim that isn't subjected to the wind." Harry explained.

Now Yokomizo knew it. The window of the room lay behind the corner.

"Additionally, the call she made with the reception for the wake-up call, proves that she was at her room at the time of the crime." Harry continued.

"So she is the culprit?" Yokomizo asked only to be interrupted by Maeda.

"No, I am the culprit, I pushed him down. Akiko is innocent. That is also proven by the fact that she met the Baron. I was under the costume." He shouted.

"Satoru, so you have been it." Akiko said. "You did it to protect me."

"To protect?" Yokomizo inquired.

"Yes, Mr Maeda appeared disguised as the Baron on front of Miss Sayama to distract any suspicion from her. He took the things from the office beforehand. But he isn't her accomplice." Conan explained "He did it on his own account after he found out the identity of the culprit. I don't know if it was the unique way of the tie knot…"

This got a caught shocked look of Maeda.

"… or if that even is a peculiarity of hers, but one thing is for sure, after returning to his room, he found something distinctive."

"And what was that?" Yokomizo asked.

"Something that hadn't been stored at the office, where the body had been kept, but was later found in the pool." Harry continued the explanation. "It was the wig."

Murmurs of Hawk were voiced again by the crowd. This was part of Harry's unique persona as a detective, he spotted the smallest details.

"I think he found it in her luggage and knew from there on. He knew that she was the culprit." Harry stated.

"B-But…" Ran tried to reason.

"It was there because she didn't need it for her plan after all as Mr Ebara and the Baron coincidentally had the same hairstyle." Harry told them.

"I understand. And with the stolen clothes and the wig he appeared in front of her. He took a major risk with it." Yokomizo said.

"Yes, he was ready to be arrested. He even kept silent about his alibi and the witnesses so it couldn't be used to clear him in case of a later arrest. He did it so he would be falsely arrested instead of Miss Sayama if it was inevitable." Harry confirmed.

"Ha, absolutely ridiculous." Miss Sayama spoke. "Because of your over eagerness my perfect crime is now done for." She said nonchalantly. "Yes, I confess, I killed Tokio Ebara. I did it to avenge the death of my brother three years ago. Ebara was responsible for his death. He killed him."

"Killed him?" Yokomizo asked.

"At least figuratively. He had hacked the program 'Workshop' which was vital for the continued survival of my brother's company." She told him.

"Workshop!" Mrs Kamijo gasped.

"Do you know that one?" Yokomizo asked Mrs Kamijo.

"Yes, Tokio sold that program to me three years ago. But I took it from the market less than a year after that because I had found out that it had been hacked software." She explained.

"Great, but by that point my brother had already jumped from the roof of his company." Miss Sayama shouted back.

"After that I swore to avenge him and came up with this plan, which was the mystery tour. With the infamous computer virus 'Night Baron' as my bait, it was easy to get him to participate. Of course he didn't know that instead of the virus only his death was awaiting him. Yesterday evening after dinner I got him to follow me to my room after I made a scene with Satoru to get rid of him.

"Ebara was there immediately once I had mentioned the virus. I put a sleeping drug into his drink and he fell asleep. I prepared his room as planned and pushed him down from my room. He died exactly like my brother did. I just didn't plan for you Mr Mori and you Mr Black. Sadly Mr Mori participated in my tour too. I even pushed little Conan from the balcony into the pool to get you to leave, but you kept cool. And then I even had the bad luck to have 'The Hawk' here to spot those pesky details that normally would have been overlooked at the corpse."

Then she deflated.

"What do you say now Satoru? I fine woman you got close to, aren't I?" She said laughing.

When she passed the place Conan stood behind Mori in handcuffs, he could see tears in her eyes.

"I will wait for you." Mr Maeda told her loudly.

She was shocked by that and surprised.

"I will wait, no matter how long it takes." He stated.

"Don't be an idiot." She answered.

Miss Sayama was led into the police car and entered after nodding slightly. All the people present looked after her silently. Mr Maeda was also arrested for interfering with the investigation, but Inspector Yokomizo told everybody that he would probably be let off lightly.

* * *

><p>The next morning all the participants of the tour were checking out of the hotel together with Harry and Sirius. Conan, wanting to know some things, was talking with Mrs Kamijo.<p>

"So the reason you drugged Uncle Kogoro was to have a look in his notebook to find out the identity of the Baron?" He asked surprised.

"Yes, I thought if I looked at the notes of the famous master detective, I would figure out the identity of the Baron. I really wanted to have that virus But there was nothing written in the notebook. He kept all the information in his head. Of course I only wanted the virus to develop protective software against it. But I doubt everybody had intentions as noble as mine." She added with a look at the other participants.

"Don't put me in the same category with that Oedipus there." Mr Kaneshiro defended himself, pointing at Mr Konno.

"I only wanted justice. I wanted to punish the inventor of that program that destroyed my valuable program four years ago. It was like a child to me." He stated.

"You even played a blind man for that didn't you?" Conan asked.

"You are as perceptive as your cousin, little one." Mr Kaneshiro said lifting his glasses from his eyes. "I thought I wouldn't be taken serious if I played a blind old man."

"I also couldn't overlook your efforts to prove Satoru's alibi Ran." Mrs Kamijo told Ran. "I saw that you looked all over the hotel to find an alibi for him."

"Well, he was my idol." Ran admitted embarrassedly. "Also, somebody told me once that I couldn't give up until the end." She had a blush on her cheeks saying that.

Sirius and Harry grinned looking at Conan, hearing that. It was obvious to them who she meant.

"Oh, did you call your boyfriend?" Mrs Kamijo asked, hoping on some good gossip.

"No, not really." Ran deflected with raised hands.

"Who is this somebody?" Conan asked, getting shaking heads from Harry and Sirius.

"He is so dense." Harry complained.

"Seriously. I think I need to put a lesson on girls on both of your schedules." Sirius said.

"Not you too, Conan, you know who I mean, that mystery freak that is who-knows-where at the moment." Ran answered.

Sirius and Harry really had fun with Conan's confused look on his face.

* * *

><p><strong>That's it for this case. Till next time.<strong>


	14. The Death of Albus Dumbledore

**Hi, this chapter will get the Hogwarts side of the story forward. The MOB gets his due. Thanks to those that left reviews, even if a few more would have been nice. I know that many more have read the story thanks to the hits. Well, you can't have everything.**

**Now I wish you happy reading.**

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><p><strong>The Death of Albus Dumbledore<strong>

Conan sat on his seat in his maths class and was bored out of his mind. He really wanted to just leave and learn magic. He needed the practice and he only had time until they found a permanent antidote to the poison he had been forced to take. Harry had some ideas based on the blood sample he had taken from him, but it would take some time to really find an antidote without having the poison itself to work with. For the sake of retaining his cover, he had to attend primary school again. He had managed to deceive all the ones who knew him from his 'previous life'. But the way to easy lessons were getting to him.

The only positive thing right now was that it was the last lesson for the day and he would be going home to Harry's very soon. They would spend their time today with charms from third year classes. He was really getting the hang of magic. And he had noticed that Harry was really good at teaching. Perhaps he should pursue a career in the field. From his story about his fifth year at Hogwarts he had managed to prepare his fellow students for their Defence OWL exams well enough.

Finally the saving bell rang and Conan packed his things into his bag and left the class with his friends Ayumi, Mitsuhiko and Genta. As they had the same way home, Conan accompanied Ayumi regularly and the other two followed them. To Conan's surprise Harry was standing at the gate of the school waiting for him.

Hi, Conan, how was school?" Harry asked.

"Boring." Conan answered honestly.

Harry winced in sympathy. He couldn't imagine how hard it had to be for someone of Shinichi's intelligence to be forced to sit through primary school classes.

"What are you doing here, Harry?" Ayumi asked curiously.

"Well, originally I had planned to meet Conan at my apartment, but Uncle Simon brought his new girlfriend home, so that isn't that good a place to be at right now." Harry said a bit embarrassed.

"Why not?" Genta asked clueless.

"That is something you will understand when you are older, Genta. Just let it rest and know they want to be alone." Harry told him, getting a scowl from the boy.

Harry understood the reason well; every child hated being told 'You will know when you are older'. But it would be very bad form to talk about sex with a six year old.

"So what are we going to do now, Harry?" Conan asked.

Without the wards around the apartment they couldn't train magic.

"I thought we could use the time to visit the botanic garden." Harry said, indicating to Conan that it would be a magical greenhouse.

"Sounds okay to me. There isn't really much else to do." Conan agreed.

"Oh, can we come too?" Ayumi asked.

Harry hadn't expected this and tried a way to find a way out of this. He couldn't take muggle children with him into a magical garden.

"Uhm, normally I would say yes, but I know that your mum wanted to take you clothes shopping today, Ayumi, and if I remember correctly Genta has to help at his family's restaurant on Tuesdays."

Both Ayumi and Genta looked as if they had just remembered those details.

"Tell, you what, I will leave you three with a little riddle for you to solve. If you manage to find the solution without anybody helping you until Friday, I will take you on a little camping trip. I am sure the Professor will also come with us." Harry offered to distract them.

"Really?" Mitsuhiko asked excitedly.

"Yep." Harry answered.

"Okay, but it isn't one of those bad word-play riddles Professor Agasa gives us all the time?" Genta asked cautiously.

Harry laughed, he knew those riddles and they were really bad.

"No, I promise it is not one of them. But you might want to write the details I give you to help solving the case down. Otherwise you might forget something important." He advised them.

Mitsuhiko quickly took a notebook out from his schoolbag ready to write down the clues.

"Ready?" Harry asked.

All three nodded.

"Okay. During the maiden trip of the ocean cruiser 'Pride of Spain' the cook prepared a majestic gateau. It was meant to adorn the table of Queen Isabella who was gracing the ship with her presence during the trip. Finally it was time for dinner but the gateau was gone. The cook was frantic and looked all over the ship for his masterpiece but he was unable to find it. Finally he resigned to having to tell the queen that the gateau was gone and there wouldn't be her favourite dessert today.

"But just when he wanted to leave the kitchen, he found a note with a coded message. The message was as followed:"

Here Harry wrote down the coded message as he couldn't speak it. He gave the piece of paper with the message to Ayumi.

"The cook knew he had perhaps ten minutes to find out what the message said and find the gateau before the Queen would get angry. Now all you have to do is decode the message and afterwards tell me where the cake is hidden, why the thief stole the gateau and who was the thief. As I told you, you have until Friday after school and as I showed Conan the method to decode the message earlier he is forbidden to help you." Harry explained.

"Uh, that's unfair." Genta complained knowing that Conan was the best at solving riddles.

"I am sure you three can find the solution. After all you have some days left. And you are only forbidden to ask others for help to solve the riddle, but you can look up things everywhere you like. Okay, now go home." Harry said grinning.

"Okay, bye Harry, bye Conan." They said and left to go home.

"What message did you give them to decode?" Shinichi asked.

"It's a simple code. All they have to do is replacing the numbers of the code with their counterparts in the hiragana alphabet. And with Mitsuhiko on the team, they will find that bit out before Friday." Harry informed Conan.

They walked around the school into an abandoned shack that had once been used for sports equipment until the roof got damaged and a new shack was cheaper to build than repair the old one. Harry put up a muffliato charm.

"Okay they should be able to do that. So for today we are doing Herbology?" Shinichi asked in a low voice.

"In combination with Potions. The place we are going to is in the possession of my Potions teacher. He likes to grow his own ingredients. He has a double mastery in Herbology and Potions. Next to the greenhouse is a completely equipped Potions lab. As we normally skip over Potions to maximize your time to grow your core, I thought this would be the best way to deal with Sirius' new love interest." Harry answered equally.

"So it is the place where your snowy owl is staying. Who is Sirius' new flame?" Shinichi asked.

"He met her while he was analysing some curses that were placed on a cave where the goblins suspected hidden treasure on one of the sparsely populated islands south of Kagoshima. She was one of the appraisers for the treasure. Her name is Akako Tokuyama. They hit it off and are seeing each other irregularly. From what Sirius told me, she is visiting the Tokyo branch of Gringotts for a week." Harry informed his friend.

"So, will we have to find other things to work on this week?" Shinichi asked.

"No, they will be out the next two days therefore we can use the apartment. And from what I know they planned to make a trip to Kyoto on the weekend." Harry answered.

"Good to know. How will we get to the greenhouses?"

"I will apparate us." Harry said.

"I hate side-along apparition." Shinichi complained.

"Tough, it's the only way we can use. And it is faster and a lot less sickening than Samurai Travel." Harry countered.

"Point." Shinichi admitted.

Samurai Travel was the Japanese version of the Knight Bus in England and it was horrible to travel with it. Obviously being incapable of driving was a requirement for the driver.

Harry held his arm out and Shinichi took it. Harry spun on the spot and vanished.

* * *

><p>Ron and Hermione stood in Dumbledore's office and listened to his new information.<p>

"I have found a location that is probably the hiding place for one of Voldemort's horcruxes." He informed his two spies.

Even if Harry wasn't at Hogwarts anymore, the two Gryffindors kept him informed about the climate within the student body and any plots they found out about. They didn't find out much anymore though, as most students stayed away from them and especially the interesting ones that Neville Longbottom rallied around him.

"That's great, headmaster. Where do you think it is?" Hermione asked eagerly.

"In a cave near the coast where the orphanage took the children every summer. I know from Mrs Cole, the matron at the time I visited Tom Riddle to give him his Hogwarts letter, that there was an incident with some children and Tom in a cave. The children came back frightened. I went there and found traces of magical concealment. I want to take one of you with me, while the other one keeps an eye on things here while we are gone." Dumbledore informed them.

"Alright. I think it would be best if Hermione stayed here and I went with you. I am physically stronger than her and if we are searching a cave that might come in handy." Ron said.

Hermione was a bit miffed at having to stay behind, but Ron's statement was true.

"He is right. I will keep an eye on things here and inform you when you return if anything strange happens." She said.

"Very well. Mr Weasley, please follow me to the gates, we will apparate from there." Dumbledore said.

Dumbledore didn't inform them that he already knew how to undo the protection around this horcrux. While he didn't know which one it was, he had already investigated the cave and knew that the potion that protected the horcrux was a vile one. He had considered just taking a house elf to drink it, but with Weasley coming he could fake his own death better. The curse had nearly run its course and he had to get a new body fast.

The ritual was ready. He had instructed Severus about the steps he had to follow once his body was dead. It was a stroke of luck that he had managed to bind the Potions master to him seventeen years ago. While Severus never was light, the bond he had unknowingly built kept him under Dumbledore's control. All the components were ready and he just needed to add the last core ingredient, flesh from his dead body. The ritual was a mix of necromancy and bloodmagic. Of course it was illegal but that didn't concern Dumbledore. He would return more powerful than before and would take care of Tom afterwards.

* * *

><p>Dumbledore and Ron apparated at the top of a cliff overlooking the sea.<p>

"Well, this is the cliff where the cave I found is in. I have done some checking for the protections when I found this place first, so I know how to undo them. I must stress nonetheless that past the first set of protections I don't know what Tom will have come up with. So I want you to promise me that you will follow my orders without question." Dumbledore said looking sternly at Ron.

"Of course, Professor Dumbledore." Ron answered.

"I mean it, even if you don't understand the reason for my orders, they are to be followed. If I say run or stop, do it immediately." Dumbledore added.

Ron nodded.

"Very well, we need to climb down this small path over there the muggle way. Tom put up wards to prevent any apparition closer to the cave than this point where we are." Dumbledore explained.

Ron followed Dumbledore down to the cave, twice nearly slipping from the narrow path which was slippery from the sea water. Dumbledore really regretted having to take the fool with him, but he needed him as a witness and while Hermione Granger would have been better for the enchantments Ron was better for physical exertion. Finally they reached the bottom of the path and stood in front of a cave, which was soon giving way to a large lake.

"We will have to swim through the lake to get to the place where the horcrux is hidden, Mr Weasley." Dumbledore said.

Ron frowned but said nothing. This was his chance to be a hero and not be overshadowed by Harry. Both went into the water and began swimming, Dumbledore's long hair and beard drifting on top of the water. When they reached the other end and climbed out of the water, Ron was already breathing heavily. Swimming in full robes was not something he was used doing. And for all his bragging about being a great Quidditch player, he was not the best in physical fitness.

Finally Dumbledore used a drying charm on Ron to stop the redhead from shivering violently. Really, the boy needed to improve his spell repertoire. Dumbledore analysed the wall in front of him, all for the show effect of course, until he stopped over the spot where the tribute of a little blood had to be paid. It was very clever. If Tom ever checked on his horcrux, he would know who had been there. If he wasn't already planning his death and resurrection he would have made Weasley do it. But now this would only boost his greatness in the eyes of the boy.

They entered the next cave with another lake in it after the wall was opened with a little of Dumbledore's blood and him telling Weasley that it must be Tom's idea of weakening his opponent to gain entrance. What he didn't tell him was that if Tom had been better at blood based wards this could have been the death of anybody but Tom.

Dumbledore led the boy around the edge of the lake to the place where the boat was hidden underwater. He needed to find a way to get the boy notice the inferi without him endangering the mission.

"Alright, I will try something before we go further. Accio horcrux." Dumbledore called out.

As he had predicted, some inferi jumped out of the water as if to intercept the spell. Ron screamed at the sight of the inferi.

"Hm, so that is Tom's next obstacle. Inferi. Well, he always had a morbid sense of humour." Dumbledore commented. "Ah, here it is." He added triumphantly, pulling on the chain of the boat.

"Give me a hand, Mr Weasley; we will get the transport device Tom thought of to get over the lake."

Ron snapped out of his stupor and helped pulling. Ron didn't realize it, but Dumbledore didn't really use any power to pull, no, that kind of work was for underlings. When the boat was out of the water, he told Ron to climb inside and then went in himself. The boat began floating long over the lake and they were silent, except the occasional whimper from Ron when one of the inferi drifted along the boat.

"Whatever you do, don't touch the water, Mr Weasley. The defence mechanism is set to activate once the surface of the water is touched by anything but the boat." Dumbledore warned him.

Finally they reached the island in the middle of the lake and Dumbledore started to inspect the pedestal with the basin on top of it intently. Ron was watching the surroundings as if the inferi could attack anytime.

"Ah, yes. I see how we have to do this." Dumbledore finally said.

"How sir?" Ron asked.

"Well, the potion in the basin has to be drunk. And the only way seems to be the goblet. The horcrux is at the bottom of the basin and you can't grab though the potion to get it, the potion has to be completely taken from the basin. Now listen, Mr Weasley. You will force me to drink the potion no matter what I say or do to stop you. I have taken some antidotes for different poisons before we started as a precaution and now it seems to come in handy. If I had you drink it we couldn't be that sure. Do you understand?" Dumbledore asked.

"Yes, sir." Ron answered sounding relieved.

"Well, then let's do it."

Dumbledore took the goblet and began filling it with the potion. He drank, immediately feeling the need to stop and drink some water. He took the second goblet full of potion and after it let it fall to the ground. Ron obediently filled it again and again, forcing the potion down Dumbledore's throat. Dumbledore was reliving his worst memories, most of them being when he was stumped in his quest for fame and wealth.

"No, not her, not him, I can't lose them." He moaned out, remembering what he had felt when Aberforth had interfered with his plans and he had been forced to fight Gellert.

The murder of Arianna was one of them. It just wouldn't have done for him to leave instead of grieving for his dead sister. His good image had depended on it. All the plans for dominance of wizards had depended on the image of the charismatic, reliable leader. That event had thrown him back for two decades. He originally had planned to join Gellert, gain the Deathly Hallows and charm his way into the trust of the powerful people in Europe. Then, once the power base was secured, he would have propagated the swift and decisive action that would have gained them control over Europe.

It would have been so simple. With Europe being the powder keg it had always been, the many monarchies were simply unable to peacefully co-exist, you just needed to convince the magical population that soon the muggles would return to their practices of witch hunts. The second world war, which Gellert had used to get rid of his opponents and as cover for the wizarding war on the continent, would have been perfect to prove the thesis that only wizards could lead the world into a peaceful future. Then he and Gellert would have been the powerful leaders. But no, he was stuck in England, pretending to mourn over his sister and refusing power to rebuild his image.

And Gellert didn't even manage to be in a strong enough position to not be taken down. Oh he gained power and influence, but he had seen the signs which way the muggle war would take in 1945. The Germans were losing and they were caught in a pincer attack from all sides. The Allies had won more and more ground. Gellert and his war would have been noticed immediately and with four powerful muggle nations already having their weapons placed to take the wizards out there was simply no sense in wasting the chance to gain power for himself. So he had taken Gellert out in a manipulated duel. Of course nobody knew of his manipulations. It had been the point of change in his life. Being the defeater of Gellert Grindelwald his rise to power in England was open.

But the time had not been on his side. He had underestimated Voldemort. Stupid boy. If he wouldn't have wanted to slaughter all muggles, he could have become an ally in Dumbledore's quest for wizarding supremacy. But no, the boy didn't get that they had to do something about the horribly mismatched numbers between muggles and wizards before something could be started. Why did he think he (Dumbledore) had propagated for better integration of muggleborns? Not because he liked them so much, that was for sure.

His plan had been to strengthen the old bloodlines by having powerful muggleborns marry powerful purebloods. In Tom Riddle had been shown that a halfblood that got fresh genes in addition to a powerful bloodline could be capable of incredible feats. He also encouraged those pureblood marriages that were sure to produce powerful children to have as many children as possible. But nobody saw the logic in his actions of course. Why did the pureblood supremacists not understand that to preserve their lines they needed as many children as possible? They could easily afford to raise them. If only all those that were fertile had four children or so, the number of powerful witches of wizards with pure blood would have been so much higher now.

But no, families like the Weasleys were mocked for their poverty due to having to feed so many mouths. Did nobody see how powerful the children of Molly and Arthur were? He had noticed it early on. First William, who easily mastered even difficult spells and was now a curse breaker and about to marry a quarter veela, which would again bring powerful fresh blood into the equation. Or Charles, restraining and working with dragons took power and intelligence. Percival, while too authority loving and blindly following the Ministry, still a powerful wizard. The twins were highly capable as well, as was Ginevra. The only exception was Ronald, but that was more based on laziness than bad genes.

Others as well. Harry Potter, while the brat was a nuisance for his plans, was very powerful. The match between James and Lily had been perfect. If only they could have lived longer and had more children. Severus Snape. A genius and a powerful wizard at that. No, the potential was clear and more children raised by his ideals would have meant an army once he was ready. No one but him had seen the problems that turned up and the only way to have enough people to even think about overtaking the muggle world was having enough skilled and powerful wizards and witches to keep them under control. And with Voldemort killing so many, those plans were again delayed.

Finally Ron gave him the last goblet of potion and the horcrux, the locket was visible. Ron for once not being stupid took it out before the potion refilled. His attempts to give his headmaster water with the goblet though were pitiful. While he tried to fill it with the aguamenti charm, he didn't produce more than a few droplets of water. Not that it would have helped. So the stupid boy ran to the lake to get some water from there. Didn't he remember what he had told him about breaking the surface?

Predictably once he pushed the goblet under the water, the inferi began attacking. The boy screamed and tried to pitifully hold them at bay. Really, he knew that Severus had covered inferi in his sixth year class and had told the students that only fire would work against them. So he had to save the stupid boy to keep his witness for his great demise. He forced himself to push the effects of the potion aside and shot a fire vortex at the inferi, freeing Weasley.

Obviously the boy realized what he had to do and started doing incendio spells. Was that the only fire spell he could do? A first year spell? He really should have taken Granger on the trip. At least she had a big repertoire of spells. He managed to get both of them into the boat and had Weasley take them out of the cave and undo the blood protection this time. He just gave into the weakness and let himself be dragged away. The potion was more powerful than he had first estimated. His precautions didn't really help.

Once they were through the first lake and at the entrance of the cave, he knew Weasley would never be able to get them up to the top of the cliff without killing them. And he needed his body being brought back to Hogwarts for Severus to kill him and start the ritual. So he produced with an enormous amount of concentration a portkey from a tissue. He had Weasley touch the portkey and activated it. It brought them back to the entrance of the school

* * *

><p>Weasley once more proved to be an embarrassment of a wizard. Instead of levitating his body up to the school, he dragged him there the muggle way. Sometimes Molly Weasley's attitude was doing more harm than good. With her refusing to let her children do simple spells over the holidays, they had it ingrained in their brains to not use magic for the most logical things. After all, all pureblood children should know that in magical residences the Ministry couldn't determine who did a spell. They gained an advantage on muggleborns by that and when a powerful match was made following his plan, the pureblood part of the marriage would easily be the one who dominated the marriage.<p>

But then when they nearly reached the entrance doors to the castle, there was a not expected problem. Draco Malfoy, Bellatrix Lestrange and Augustus Rookwood were standing there, wands pointed at them.

"Expelliarmus." Draco shouted.

Draco fired his spell at Dumbledore and his wand was flung out of his hand and landed in Malfoy's. No, this couldn't happen; he couldn't lose the allegiance of the Elder Wand. He had fought too hard to get it.

"Petrificus totalus." Rookwood added and took Weasley out.

The boy fell to the ground without ever even pulling his wand out.

"Well done, Draco." Rookwood commented.

"Hello, Albus. Oh, is the mighty Leader of the Light a bit sick?" Bellatrix mocked.

Dumbledore stared at the three.

"Bellatrix. I have to say I didn't expect any of you here at Hogwarts. May I inquire how you managed to get inside?" Dumbledore asked strained.

"Oh, you poor trusting old man. You never saw the flaw in your great plans. We used the easiest way. We came through the floo in Severus' office." Bellatrix said with a crazy laugh.

Severus let them in? No, he hadn't allowed him to let any Death Eaters into the castle. That was impossible. Severus was bound to his orders.

"Are you thinking about your pitiful oath, with which you bound him? You should have realized that it was void the moment the Dark Lord had to kill the mudblood Lily Potter." Rookwood asked.

Dumbledore was shocked. They knew about the oath. And now from the shadows behind them Severus came into the open.

"Severus." Dumbledore pleaded.

"Don't waste your breath, Albus. Your great plans failed and the Dark Lord will be very pleased with our achievements. And for your little ritual, it would have failed either way. I inspected the stone; it is a very good fake. It can turn metal into gold of low quality, that is true, but it doesn't produce elixir of life. I don't know if Flamel ever let you have the real stone or if Potter did something about it. But when you failed to protect Lily, I knew you were too weak to ever really oppose the Dark Lord. He knew I went to you under the pretence of regretting my actions.

"How could he not, it had been his plan after all. I don't deny I wanted to have Lily for me. But not out of love. She was the most beautiful, most powerful and smartest witch of our generation. I wanted her to breed her and satisfy my desire. The Dark Lord approved. We would have had powerful children which would have been raised to follow his teachings. He is an intelligent man after all. We didn't expect your oath trap though, but the Dark Lord knew a way around that obstacle as well. Well, I don't regret anything. My loyalty always lay with the Dark Lord. Why would I ever want to serve the Light when it is so pitifully weak?" Snape sneered.

Dumbledore didn't believe it. The reason he had always trusted Severus had been the oath he had tricked him into. But he had clearly overlooked that he had broken his part of the oath and therefore destroyed the bond when Lily Potter died. It had been the stipulation of the oath that Severus would do anything if Dumbledore kept Lily safe. He had been so busy with ensuring the prophecy didn't activate against him, that he forgot about that detail.

"I see you now realize your mistake, Albus. Well, it is too late. You are the last obstacle the Dark Lord has in Britain. Farewell. Avada Kedavra." Snape shouted.

The green light hit Dumbledore in the chest and he fell lifeless to the ground.

Malfoy pointed his wand at Ron.

"You are a pathetic excuse for a wizard, Weasley. I really miss Potter. He was at least a worthy opponent; he had smarts and was fun to argue with. You are just stupid." He insulted Ron.

Rookwood lifted the full body bind on the head so Ron could answer.

"What are you talking about?" Ron shouted. "Harry was an idiot."

"Crucio." Rookwood shouted and Ron began screaming.

If he hadn't been in the body bind he would have thrashed around too. Finally Rookwood ended the curse and Draco spoke up again.

"Oh, really? Then why did he manage to get away from you and the other blood traitors? I have to admit, I only had a few suspicions over the years, but there were clear signs that he was onto you. And contrary to you he only acted on my taunting when there was something to gain for him or those he considered his friends. Almost Slytherin of him." Draco said.

There were sounds of running close to them.

"Oh, it seems the backup is here. The only reason you are still alive, Weasley, is to report the exact details of our little chat and what happened with Dumbledore. Don't make any mistake. The Dark Lord will take over the country soon and bloodtraitors like you will be the first to die." Snape sneered and the four left running for the gates.

But before they apparated away, Bellatrix turned around, facing the ones following them and shot the Dark Mark into the sky.

"_Morsmordre."_ She cackled and then turned on the spot to leave.

* * *

><p><strong>So there you have it. I thought Snape should be really dark in my story and so I came up with a plot to explain Dumbledore's trust. How did you like it? Till next time.<strong>


	15. Prophecy Revealed

**Hi, I decided that this week Wizarding detective was due for an update again. Thanks to all the reviewers. Enough words, happy reading.**

* * *

><p><strong>Prophecy revealed<strong>

Sirius, Harry and Shinichi stood at the Atrium of the Japanese Ministry of Magic. They had made an appointment with the local Head of the Department of Mysteries. From Fred and George they had found out that Snape had been a traitor all the time and that he had killed Dumbledore in front of Ron. They had heard about the story and 'intercepted' their brother in Diagon Alley and got him to part with a copy of his memory of the event. They had sent the copy to Harry via Gringotts, asking how far he had managed to get with his magical studies and if he would come back to help. They also reported about their new resistance group that had assembled after it had been clear that the Order of the Phoenix was done for.

Remus was the leader of the new Freedom movement. Harry and Sirius had been very happy to find out that Remus had separated himself from Dumbledore. And with Dumbledore dead things got easier for Harry and Shinichi. They wouldn't be in danger of being manipulated and killed by Dumbledore anymore. But they still had to be cautious. They had discussed the merit of asking the Japanese Department of Mysteries if they had a copy of the prophecy in England. After a long discussion they had decided they could risk it because Dumbledore was dead. Otherwise he could have found Harry too easily.

They handed over their wands to have them checked and waited for their contact, Hideo Masamura, the head of the DoM. Finally a man in a cloak that hid his face was walking towards them.

"Mr Black?" He asked.

"Yes, you must be Mr Masamura. Thank you for meeting us." Sirius greeted.

"I understand you have some questions about a topic that my department deals with." Mr Masamura said.

"Yes, that is correct. Would it be possible to talk somewhere private?" Sirius asked.

"Of course, please follow me." Mr Masamura said and led them away. They took the elevator down to a modern looking room with seven doors.

"This is the entrance to my department. Only the ones working here are authorized to come here. The elevator checks the magical signatures. They are stored in our mainframe in the Ministry." He explained.

"That's very impressive." Harry commented.

"Thank you, Mr Potter." Mr Masamura said shocking the other three.

"How, do you know that?" Harry asked worried.

"Oh, we have been watching you for some time now. As we do with everybody who is subject to a prophecy. But we never actively interfere. Too much damage could be done by those trying to make prophecies come true." He answered. "And you don't disguise your magical signature at all. So to those who know what to look for, it is really easy to recognize you."

"Okay, I can accept that." Harry said still not pleased, but at least he hadn't been ratted out yet..

They took one of the doors that opened at a command from Mr Masamura and walked into the DoM.

"I understand you have visited the English DoM, Mr Potter?" Mr Masamura asked.

"Yes, Voldemort, the local Dark Lord, tried to lure me into a trap by having me think that he held my godfather, Sirius Black, captive there and was torturing him. I have a connection to him through my scar, which is a remainder of the failed killing curse. I pretended to fall for it and went there with some classmates which couldn't be swayed to stay at Hogwarts."

"Ah yes, your infamous curse scar. All those working in the Departments of Mysteries all over the world would have liked to inspect it, but you were hidden too well by Albus Dumbledore." He commented.

Harry grumbled something unintelligible.

Finally they reached a room where some armchairs were placed around a small table with a teapot and some crumpets.

"Please sit down. Would you like some tea?" Masamura asked.

"Yes, please." Sirius agreed and Harry and Shinichi nodded.

Once they were all seated and had their tea, Masamura started to ask the reason they had come to see him.

"Well, as you already said, I am subject to a prophecy. Dumbledore, who heard the prophecy that Sybill Trelawney made, told me the content of the prophecy just after said incident in the English DoM. I have reason to believe I was shown a fake prophecy. That man has manipulated my life since my parents died, perhaps even before that point. I think he put the prophecy together so it fit his purposes better. As I am currently hiding to train to get to a level where I have any hope at surviving a battle against Voldemort and don't intend to ever let myself be manipulated again, it is hardly possible for me to contact the English DoM to ask if they have other recordings or if the broken original could be repaired. So I thought it could be possible that other DoMs have their own recording." Harry explained.

"No, they normally don't have them. And once the recording is broken it is beyond repair. But yours is a special case. We indeed have a recording of that prophecy as it involves one of the Japanese wizards as well as you." Masamura said, looking intently at Shinichi. "In this case, Mr Kudo, who I was informed, had his magic unbound just some months ago."

"I think I don't want to know how you found that piece of information. I am trying really hard to pretend that I am a six year old child." Shinichi grumbled.

"It was not that easy. We knew you were a wizard since your birth. Contrary to other countries, Japan has a very fine tuned detector for magical children. We can detect them a week after they are born. But those records are only open to the Unspeakables. The normal records the other departments of the Ministry have, record first accidental magic bursts like it is done in all countries. The name of the child then is put onto the lists for contacting the families. The point in time when that is done differs from country to country. Europe tends to do it when the child is about to turn eleven, we in Japan do it when the child turns five."

The three nodded, they had known about those differences.

"Now, Mr Kudo, your core was bound nearly completely when you were six months old. At that time, you hadn't displayed accidental magic yet. So nobody knew something was wrong. You were recorded as a squib by the Ministry and not bothered. But the outburst from the destruction of the bounds on your core was again noticed by our instruments. We knew you now had access to your magic. But soon after we couldn't find you anymore and your alias Conan Edogawa turned up. The only reasons we made the connection was that your magical signature was in our records and that you were in close contact with Mr Potter and Mr Black. I doubt anybody without our amount of information would find you."

"That's reassuring. Well, as you can guess, Harry and I would really like to know the true wording of that prophecy. So we came here to ask if we could hear it." Shinichi said,

"Of course, I will go there myself to keep it secret that you are visiting the department. I will be back in perhaps fifteen minutes." Masamura said and stood up from his chair.

* * *

><p>Harry, Sirius and Shinichi waited for Masamura to return. After sixteen minutes he returned with a prophecy orb and a plate in his hands. The plate had a recess for the orb to fit in.<p>

"This is a playing device for the prophecy orbs. This way they don't have to be smashed and lost for them to be heard." Masamura explained.

They nodded and waited expectantly for Masamura to prepare the orb.

"Okay, this is the prophecy." He said and activated the device.

The form of Sybill Trelawney rose over the orb.

"_The saviours of the wizarding world will come … born with the power to vanquish the dark Lords … born on two sides of the world … one born to those who thrice defied the dark Lord veiled by darkness… born as the seventh month dies … one born to the brightest mind and the magical actress … born in the middle of spring … and both will be betrayed by the dark Lord hidden in light … but together they will unite what was forcefully divided … guided by the totem of death … they will bring down the power of the dark Lords… born on two sides of the world."_

The form sank back into the orb.

"Shit, does that mean that Dumbledore is still alive somewhere and only faked his death?" Harry asked shocked.

"Not necessarily. The prophecy mentions dark lords, one hidden in light, which would fit on Dumbledore and one veiled by darkness, which could be Voldemort. While Dumbledore was killed by Snape, the prophecy only said that the saviours would have the power to vanquish the dark Lords and that they would bring down the power of the dark Lords." Sirius said.

Harry and Shinichi thought about it.

"He is right, Harry. To bring down the power of Dumbledore could mean reveal his manipulations all over the world and end his myth, while the same phrase in case of Voldemort could mean we have to deal with him directly. The descriptions of the saviours are too fitting to be coincidence. And England and Japan are on opposite sides of the world." Shinichi said.

"Not directly, we, here in Tokyo, are living on the 140th degree of latitude. London is on the 0th degree of latitude." Masamura corrected.

Shinichi pondered.

"Would it really have to be taken that literally?" He asked.

"Probably. Prophecies are tricky to interpret but there are always some things that are very precise. Either it could have been born in the middle of spring in your case, the 4th May isn't the middle exactly but close to it while 'born as the seventh month dies' very directly points at the end of July, even if it doesn't show the year. But by looking at your certificate of birth that is easily solved. Mr Kudo, weren't you born in Waiyevo on the Fidschi Islands? That is very close to the 180th degree of latitude." Masamura said.

"Yes, I was. My parents were on a vacation that they had won there. I was born a bit early." Shinichi remembered what his mother had once told him.

"What could 'guided by the totem of death' mean?" Sirius asked.

Harry grinned.

"I would have thought you would realize that part easily, Padfoot." Harry answered.

Sirius thought a moment what Harry meant and then connected it with his nickname.

"Of course, my animagus form." He said and Harry nodded.

"So there is no mysterious power that I have that Voldemort knows not. Of course, that was just a thing MOB put in the fake prophecy to interpret it to his liking." Harry pondered.

"If I may ask, what was the wording of the fake prophecy?" Masamura asked.

The three looked at each other and nodded. Harry started.

"_The one with the power to vanquish the dark Lord approaches … born to those who have thrice defied him … born as the seventh month dies … and the dark Lord will mark him as his equal … but he will have powers the dark Lord knows not … and one must die by the hand of the other … for neither can live while the other survives … the one with the power to vanquish the dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies."_ He recited.

"A likely story. It would have made both sides hunt for that child. I guess Voldemort only knew part of it?" Masamura said.

"Yes, he knew the prophecy up to 'born as the seventh month dies'. Dumbledore told me that a Death Eater was in the Hog's Head in Hogsmeade when he held that interview with Trelawney. It was one hint for me that the prophecy he told me was a fake. He faked that interview. He always holds true job interviews in his office at Hogwarts. It sounds to me like Dumbledore heard the real prophecy, was afraid for his power, but also wanted to use the idea of a prophecy for a trap.

"He knew that one child would be born at the end of July, so he kept that part in his fake prophecy. But he didn't want to risk letting the second child live. So after he found out that either Neville or I were the one child, he searched for the second one on this side of the world and finally found Shinichi. He knew that Shinichi wouldn't be a danger to him until he became of age, so he bound his core to have him die once the maturity set in." Harry analysed.

"He probably monitored both Neville and Harry to find out which child was more powerful or which would be targeted by Voldemort. If I would try to build a trap as a dark Lord, I would wait until the one I want to catch is in it and weakened. I assume he thought Harry or Neville's parents would be able to weaken Voldemort so he could take him out. Then he could have portrayed himself as the hero again and his power and political influence again would have massively risen. But he didn't expect for Harry to survive a direct attack of Voldemort.

"You told me that Hagrid was at the house soon after the attack had happened. It seems too much of a coincidence that he would have known so soon if Dumbledore hadn't known the attack would happen. I think he probably was meant to be a witness of the complete annihilation of the Potters and Dumbledore killing Voldemort. But Harry or his parents did something to repel the killing curse. It didn't kill Voldemort but separated his body from his spirit. It's ironic that Harry was 'marked' by Voldemort like in his fake prophecy." Shinichi pointed out.

"I see what you mean. It would be very easy to manipulate Hagrid's memories so that Dumbledore was never there, that he only sent Hagrid to check why his alarms had gone off. Perhaps he disillusioned himself so that wasn't even necessary. Hagrid isn't a fully trained wizard after all. He had seen that Harry survived and with Voldemort's spirit out there, he saw an opportunity to finally gain the Potter fortune and have a malleable pawn. He had Harry be placed with his aunt that hated magic to keep him down and not let him get independent." Sirius added. "My actions to hunt Peter down after I realized he had betrayed Lily and James, helped in his goals. He just had to let Barty Crouch do what he constantly did during that time and he couldn't be blamed for anything in the unlikely case it was ever found out that I was innocent."

Harry nodded. He was furious, but it wouldn't do him any good. MOB was dead by Snape's hands and now only Voldemort and Dumbledore's myth remained to be taken down. Which would still be a massive job.

"Yes, it is always dangerous to interfere with the course of a prophecy, even if it was a fake one that only loosely based on the real one. That it came partially true was a flaw in his plan. That and the fact that somehow your country found out that Voldemort fell because of you, Mr Potter." Masamura stated.

"I can tell you how that happened." Sirius said. "While I lent my motorbike to Hagrid on the evening of Halloween, Harry was only placed with his relatives one day later. I managed to question Remus about that part who had talked with Hagrid when he taught Defence at Hogwarts. Hagrid told Remus that you were staying one day at Hogwarts in the infirmary to have Madam Pomfrey treat your wounds from the explosion.

"Hagrid went to Hogsmeade after he had delivered you to Madam Pomfrey and spread the good news that you had defeated Voldemort. From there the good news just spread. When Dumbledore wanted to leave you at the Dursleys, McGonagall tried to protest. But with her never questioning Dumbledore, she wouldn't have kept up her protest if he gave her a halfway plausible reason, like you not getting a big head over your fame."

Harry nodded. It was funny that Hagrid of all people had thwarted one of Dumbledore's plans unknowingly.

"Okay, one other thing, Mr Potter, would you like to get rid of the horcrux in your scar?" Masamura asked.

"How?" Harry said gasping.

"How I know? Well, the scar gives of a strong feeling of dark magic. I have seen horcruxes from Egypt twice before and the feeling is similar. The Departments of Mysteries have researched horcruxes, their properties, their creation and their destruction for decades. While a living one is rare, you are not the first one. A witch in 1476 in Spain, who tried to escape from persistent pursuers of the church tried to keep herself safe by creating a horcrux. Sadly the ritual was disturbed by her daughter whom came running into the room to warn her that the soldiers of the church were coming. She was just about to transfer the soul piece into the chosen object. But her daughter shifted her focus so she became the horcrux. The witch was horrified. She relentlessly searched for a way to rid her daughter of the horcrux without killing her. She finally found a method. The trick is, you can't destroy a living horcrux without killing it, but you can transfer it to something else. For the witch in question it was easy as it was her soul piece.

"Others, who found her notes on the topic, tried to gain the same effect with foreign horcruxes. In 1703 an Italian wizard found a procedure. Many of the old horcruxes were valuable objects that just didn't have any value on the market with the soul pieces in them. So the research was a promising venue. The ritual to transfer a horcrux from a living being into an object is time intense and requires some rare ingredients for the necessary potion, but it is doable." Masamura informed them.

"Could you do it here in the Department of Mysteries?" Harry asked hopefully.

"We can. But we would still need to gather the ingredients. We have a potion master who could prepare the potion. The biggest issue would be to find hair of a Grim, feathers of a magical raven and basilisk venom." They were informed.

Sirius grinned.

"Mr Masamura, get the ritual prepared. Tomorrow we can bring you the three components. I have them in my private stocks." He informed the head of the DoM.

"Really, that's unusual." Masamura said happily.

They wouldn't tell him that both the hair and the feather would be taken from Harry and Sirius' animagus forms. Those they would keep a secret.

Sirius went back to the Ministry the next day to deliver the feather from Harry, the hair from his Grim form and a vial with basilisk venom. He was told the potion would be ready in one week.

* * *

><p>Finally, one week later, Sirius, Harry and Shinichi went back to let the members of the DoM do the ritual to free Harry from the horcrux. Harry had to take off all his clothes and was only allowed to keep his boxers on. The Unspeakables needed one and a half hours to draw the runes onto Harry's body. They were all over his body, most of them concentrating on his head and upper torso though. Finally the runes were drawn and the Unspeakables told Harry the ink had to dry before they could continue.<p>

"It's itching." Harry complained.

"You will have to deal with that, Harry." Sirius said.

"I know, but it is annoying." Harry replied.

"Think of something else." Shinichi advised.

Harry pouted. Finally the ink had dried and Harry was led to a runic pentagram. On each point of the start a bowl with the potion was placed.

"Please go into the centre of the pentagram and lie down." One Unspeakable instructed Harry.

He followed all the instruction he got and finally Masamura started chanting. The runes started glowing one point of the star after the other.

"Oh, a tricky one. But we will manage." The unspeakable that watched over the whole procedure said.

Sirius and Shinichi were worried for Harry, but knew this was their best chance to get rid of the horcrux without killing Harry. After nearly an hour Harry began to contort in pain. The scar broke open and a black mist and goo poured out. The mist was then directed towards a small ruby directly over Harry. The stone would be the new horcrux. With the delicacy of the process they had needed a stone that was aligned with Harry and from all stones he had tried, that ruby was the only one to react.

It took another half hour until the full soul piece was transferred into the ruby. The runes on Harry started glowing blue and the scar on Harry's forehead started to fade away. Then a final bright light erupted from all the runes, and then it suddenly stopped. Harry lay in the pentagram with his eyes closed and didn't move. Shinichi and Sirius looked at the Unspeakables to non-verbally ask if it was okay to go over to Harry now.

"The ritual is finished. You can take him home now. He should rest for a week, and then the after-effects should have been dealt with. He also should refrain from using magic during that week. His body needs to get used to having his full potential available again. The fact that the soul-piece didn't possess him is proof that his magic protected him. I also assume that part of his magic was siphoned off towards the owner of the soul piece." Masamura explained.

"So Voldemort profited from Harry's power. Good to know the connection is cut now. Will there be other effects?" Sirius asked.

"Not that I know of, but the transfer of a horcrux is not something we regularly deal with. The ruby will be destroyed immediately by the rest of the basilisk venom you brought us. While it would be fascinating to study it, it would be too risky to let Voldemort live for much longer."

"I agree. Well, I will take Harry back home now. Thank you very much for your help, Mr Masamura." Sirius said.

"No problem Mr Black. We got very valuable information from this. We will be occupied for a long time analysing all the effects were witnessed today."

Sirius levitated Harry and spelled his clothes back onto him. Then he and Shinichi left the Department, Sirius still levitating Harry, towards the apparition point. Sirius knew he could also activate a portkey from there. When they got there, Shinichi touched the portkey and placed Harry's finger on it. Sirius activated it and the three disappeared.

* * *

><p><strong>Like it? Please review and until next time.<strong>


	16. Return of the Detective of the East?

**So, I'm back with this story too. I think it is so far the longest chapter in this story. Enjoy and thanks for all your reviews. This is one of my favourite parts of the Detective Conan manga :)**

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><p><strong>Return of the Detective of the East?<strong>

Harry was glad about the bell that ended his day at school. They had written a test in Japanese today and he hoped he had done well. The questions hadn't been that hard and he felt reasonably good about his answers. He said good-bye to his classmates and started to walk home. It was a nice day and he had planned to relax a bit before he would go to his martial arts class. Conan had called in sick for today and he was brewing a batch of pepper-up potion for him. He had started the potion this morning before school and just needed to wait until the evening for it to be ready. The actual brewing of that potion wasn't too hard and time intensive, you just needed to let it simmer eight hours after you had put in the last ingredients.

Well, he would visit Conan in the detective agency before he went to his class. Just to make sure he didn't need anything. So Harry casually walked towards the agency. When he was just outside of the building, he watched a teenager that was probably his age with a baseball cap on his head, pulling the window open rashly and looking around the street. Harry decided to go upstairs immediately and find out who the hell that guy was.

When he was at the door, he heard some deductions of the boy.

"Well, Kudo is watching you from somewhere obviously. No the proper thing to do." The boy commented.

"Shinichi is watching me? From where?" Ran asked angrily.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself." The boy said. "My name is Heiji Hattori and like Kudo I'm a high school detective."

"What? A high school detective?" Mori shouted out.

That moment Conan sneezed.

'He really got a bad cold. Well, it will be better tonight when the pepper-up potion is ready.' Harry thought.

He was about to enter, when he saw Hattori give Conan some medicine against the cold.

'Won't do much for him, but perhaps it helps until he can take the pepper-up.' Harry thought only to be witness to Conan tumbling around.

'The idiot didn't give a child alcohol?' He thought indignant.

"Now that you say it, there is a young detective in Osaka that is talked about some." Mori commented.

"Yes, they say Kudo cleans the east and Hattori the west, we are compared constantly." Heiji told Mori.

"I am a bit disappointed that you forget me in your story." Harry decided to make himself known.

Everybody turned towards him.

"Harry." Ran greeted friendly.

"And who might you be?" Heiji asked.

"Harrison Black, you might know me under the name 'The Hawk', which the media has taken to call me. And like you I am a high school detective. By the way, Ran, do you really think you are the only one Shinichi calls on the phone? The things he said Shinichi could only know if he watched you were mostly taken from our talks. And face it, Shinichi knows you well, if he hears your voice he can mostly tell if you are happy or sad. After all you grew up together." Harry smoothed the feelings Ran undoubtedly had after Heiji stirred her doubts.

"Yes, I have heard about you. But you only appeared in the news some months ago. Kudo was compared to me for a longer time, so I wanted to measure myself against him." Heiji said.

"Well, sorry to tell you that Shinichi is working on a time consuming case. He is stubborn enough to want to solve the case before he returns." Harry replied.

Harry then turned to Conan. He sniffed. It smelled like alcohol.

"What kind of alcohol did you give him?" He asked coldly.

"Don't be like that; it was just Bai Ganr, Chinese liquor." Heiji said.

"And please tell me why you thought a six year old boy would be alright drinking liquor with over ten per mill alcohol? While that liquor might have been a good present for somebody like Mr Mori, it is too strong for the body of a child." Harry admonished.

"Oh and how do you know the per mill rate of the Bai Ganr?" Heiji asked interested.

"It is printed in the sub right corner of the bottle you are holding in your hands. I am famous for my observation skills you know." Harry said smirking.

That moment a woman knocked at the frame of the open door.

"How often do you think I have already rung the bell? You don't seem to be very interested in gaining new clients" The woman stated irritated. "I am in a hurry, could we please start?"

Mori had the woman sit down at the table with a cup of tea in front of each of them. The others listened to the conversation. It seemed that the woman, Kimie Tsujimura, was the wife of a well-known diplomat and wanted Mori to investigate the new girlfriend of her step-son.

"I see what do you have to complain about her?" Mori asked.

"It's just…" Mrs Tsujimura began to explain when Heiji interrupted.

"She is too perfect and that makes you suspicious." He said.

"What?" Mori shouted, irritated that Heiji was interfering with the interview of his client.

"Humans are jealous beings, if they see something perfect they naturally look for a fault. Am I right?" Heiji asked eagerly.

"Who is the young man?" Mrs Tsujimura asked.

"A friend of my daughter." Mori answered trying to get Heiji to leave his client alone.

"Well, I would like to ask you to accompany me home, so we can include my husband into the conversation." She said, standing up from her chair.

"We are going immediately? Then why didn't you bring your husband with you?" Mori asked.

"As I said, my husband is a diplomat. If he would be seen entering a detective agency…" She started explaining.

"It would cause a scandal." Heiji finished her sentence. "All right, I am coming as well." He announced.

"What?" Mrs Tsujimura asked.

"It would be less suspicious if we were thought to be father and son than if he went alone." Mori said.

"That's true." She acknowledged. "So let's go."

"Are you coming too?" Heiji asked Ran.

"Why should I?" Ran asked still irritated with Heiji.

"The more the better. And Kudo could appear, who knows." Heiji said.

'Doubtful.' Both Shinichi and Harry thought.

"We should go as well." Conan said, after giving Harry a significant look, getting a nod from his friend.

"Conan, what about your cold?" She asked concerned.

"Already better after the medicine he gave me." Conan answered pointing at Heiji.

Harry could see that Shinichi was lying about his state of health. But he also knew that Hattori would probably do something stupid with his intention to prove he was better than Shinichi. He had a theory why Hattori thought that Shinichi was behind the success of Kogoro. Shinichi's disappearance just collided with Kogoro's raise to fame. It wasn't that ridiculous to think that Shinichi was helping Kogoro somehow.

They left the agency leaving the liquor behind on the table.

* * *

><p>Mrs Tsujimura led the party consisting of Kogoro, Ran, Harry, Heiji and Conan to her mansion and opened the door, only to be greeted by the butler, Fumio Koike.<p>

"Where is my husband?" Mrs Tsujimura asked.

"He is probably still in his study on the first floor. Who are the honoured guests?" He asked.

"Mr Mori is an old friend of mine." She informed the butler.

"May I bring something to drink madam?" The butler asked.

"No, thank you." Mrs Tsujimura answered.

"Oh, mother…" Suddenly a female voice spoke.

"Good afternoon." A smiling Yukiko Katsuragi, the girl Kogoro was asked to investigate greeted them.

Kogoro was about to say something stupid, but Heiji put his hand over Kogoro's mouth, preventing him to spill anything about his job.

"What are you doing here?" The shocked Mrs Tsujimura asked her.

"I invited her. Father refused to meet her all the time, so I asked her over without his permission. Sadly he doesn't come out of his study." Takayoshi Tsujimura, the son of the diplomat answered the question.

"Oh, are you friends of mother's?" Yukiko asked.

"That doesn't concern you. And also, I didn't allow you to call me mother, don't get too familiar with me." Mrs Tsujimura shouted at her.

"I'm sorry." Yukiko answered cowed.

"She doesn't have the right to behave like that as father's second wife." Takayoshi grumbled quietly.

Then Takayoshi had a closer look at Mr Mori.

'Didn't I see that man before?' He wondered.

* * *

><p>At the top of the stairs, they met with an old man.<p>

"Oh father, you are here." Mrs Tsujimura said surprised.

"Of course, Kimie, you did call me after all to tell you about my fishing trip. What do you say?" Toshimitsu Tsujimura asked showing her a sheet of paper with the picture of his fish. "Isn't that a major catch?"

"Y-Yes, it really is. Please go ahead to the living room, I will follow soon." She answered.

"I thought we wanted to talk with your husband." Kogoro commented while Toshimitsu walked down the stairs.

"Don't worry about it, he will forget it soon. Recently father can't remember things properly." She informed them, making them look up surprised.

Downstairs Toshimitsu presented his sheet to the butler, who was really impressed with the catch the father of his employer had made.

"Oh, gramps, you are also her." Takayoshi happily greeted his grandfather.

"Yes, I really wanted to show this to all of you." Toshimitsu said. "Say Fumio, who are the people Kimiko brought with her?"

"Madam told me Mr Mori is an old friend of hers." The butler informed him.

'Mori?' Thought Takayoshi. 'Of course, that's from where I know him.'

"He is a detective, his name is Kogoro Mori." He shouted out, shocking the others.

"Why would she bring a detective here?" The butler asked.

* * *

><p>Mrs Tsujimura knocked at the door of the study of her husband.<p>

"Are you in?" She called.

"Curious, has he gone out?" She asked herself while taking a key with its pendant out of her handbag to unlock the door.

She turned the key around and opened the door. They found Isao Tsujimura sleeping with his head leaning on his hand at his desk. The hi-fi unit was also sounding with an opera. Kogoro, Heiji, Ran and Conan were looking at the hi-fi unit while Harry was looking around in the room. Mr Tsujimura had a lot of books in the shelves behind his desk.

"Really, to just have the hi-fi unit running and dozing off." Mrs Tsujimura admonished.

She went around the desk to shake him awake.

"Isao, wake up. ISAO!" She tried to wake him.

Then the chair lost his footing and with the chair, Isao Tsujimura fell to the ground.

"Isao!" Mrs Tsujimura shouted.

From next to the hi-fi unit Heiji and Conan sprinted towards the falling man. Kogoro and Ran looked shocked and Harry looked around the room to memorize the settings of all the items in the room, in case it would become important.

Conan looked intensely at the body while Heiji felt his pulse at his neck.

"I am sorry, he is dead." Heiji stated.

"Wha-What?" Mrs Tsujimura asked with tears in her eyes.

The sound of Mr Tsujimura falling to the ground with the chair had made the other occupants of the house run up to see what had happened. Kogoro saw the implications of the events at once.

"Stay out of here!" He shouted to the ones arriving at the door. Then he turned to Mrs Tsujimura. "And you will have to stay inside the room please." He told her.

"What happened?" Toshimitsu asked.

"He is dead; Isao Tsujimura is dead." Kogoro announced.

"What?" They all cried out.

"I will call the police immediately." Kogoro said, taking off the receiver of the telephone in the room.

Conan was inspecting the corpse.

'It is still warm.' He noticed. 'Additionally the lips are discoloured violet. What's that? A tiny puncture below the hairline.'

He looked around and spotted what he was looking for under the desk. A needle was lying there. When he wanted to inspect it closer, he knocked his head against Heiji's, who was also on the ground looking for evidence.

"Ow." Both groaned.

"What are you doing here at the ground? You have to look after him better." Heiji addressed Ran. While holding Conan out from his hood. "A corpse isn't a thing a child should see."

"Y-Yes." Ran replied.

* * *

><p>Eventually the police arrived with Inspector Megure leading the investigation. He quickly summarized the fact the assembled had told him about the death of Isao Tsujimura. He turned to Kogoro and questioned him about his presence at a crime scene, again.<p>

"So, is this a murder again?" He asked with narrowed eyes.

"Well, there isn't a visible external wound, so it could have been a natural death…" Kogoro started only to be interrupted by two voices.

Everybody looked at Harry and Heiji who were the ones to speak up.

"Harrison, you are here too? That's great, did you spot something suspicious?" Megure asked glad to have one of his most helpful high school detectives around.

"Yes, Inspector Megure. There is a small puncture just below the hairline of the victim." Harry started to report.

"Additionally his lips are discoloured violet, which indicates suffocation. But there are no signs of strangulation on the body." Heiji added.

"He is right; this leads to the conclusion that this death's cause is poison." Harry said. "To be precise a fast acting poison that paralysed his nerves and had him suffocate as there are no indications of struggle of any kind."

Both high school detectives were measuring each other.

"You obviously know your game, Black." Heiji said.

"I told you, spotting details leading to the solution of the case is my specialty, Hattori. But your conclusions are also spot on." Harry answered smirking.

"Wait, Hattori? Not the son of the Chief of the Osaka police?" Megure called out.

"Oh, chief of police in Osaka…" Kogoro repeated.

"Who cares about Dad? This guy could have been killed by someone from outside. Doesn't look like anyone came from outside, but shouldn't you check anyway?" Heiji said.

Ran was blushing slightly. Heiji reminded her of Shinichi. And she didn't get to see Harry working on a case that often.

"Achoo." Conan sneezed.

"Are you ok, Conan?" Ran asked.

Harry gave Conan a meaningful look that he would take care of the case and that he (Conan) should take it easy. Conan was glad that Harry was here. With only Kogoro trying to solve the case, this would have ended horribly.

'This is bad … my cold keeps getting worse.' Conan thought.

Megure inspected the windows.

"Hmm, they're all locked from inside. Nobody could get in from outside … which means that one of you came in through the door. Madam, how many keys are there to this room?" Megure asked Mrs Tsujimura.

"Only two. This one is mine and my husband has the other." She explained showing Megure the key from her handbag.

"H-He does?" Megure asked.

"Yes." Answered Mrs Tsujimura. "He always kept it in his pants pocket."

Megure went over to the corpse and put his hand into the pants pocket to look for the key.

'Damn these pants are tight.' He mentally complained.

He finally managed to pull out the pocket and from the inside fell the folded key with its pendant.

Harry and Heiji looked shocked at that, as was Conan, who was leaning against the wall.

"H-How?" Megure stuttered.

"Huh? What's wrong?" Kogoro asked.

"You don't get it? When we came in, the door was locked. Which means the criminal locked the door on the way out. And since the lady has one of the keys and the other was in the inner pocket of the guy's pants, …" Heiji stated, waiting for everybody to realize the severity of the discovery.

"What he wants to say is that this is an impossible murder. A 'Closed Room Murder'." Harry finished Heiji's explanation with a serious look on his face.

"Closed Room Murder?" The others cried out.

"N-No way." Kogoro muttered.

'I thought so.' Heiji thought looking at Kogoro under the scrutinising eyes of Harry, who feared Heiji could find out that Kogoro was unable to solve any of the cases he was celebrated for solving. This was not good for Shinichi's cover.

'This guy didn't solve the crimes he's put in the newspapers for… It's Shinichi Kudo! He's doing it all. He's calling Kudo secretly and asking for advice. This time too I bet. All right! Let's see who can solve this mystery first, Shinichi Kudo.' Heiji thought competitive, before his gaze fell on Harry.

'But perhaps he won't need to call Kudo with Black being on the scene. From the way he is acting, he knows exactly what he is doing. His observation is spot on. Well, even if Kudo won't help out, I have my competition with one of the best detectives of the east.'

Conan meanwhile was silently suffering from the symptoms of his cold.

'Shinichi doesn't look good. I better clear this case up quick so I can take him home and put some pepper-up potion into him.' Harry thought.

"Okay, we need to ask the suspects what they did in the estimated time of the crime. The body was still warm when we arrived here, that was around 4. This means the murder happened between 3:30 and 4:00." Harry stated.

Heiji nodded. He had wanted to suggest the same.

* * *

><p>The questioning of the suspects brought some interesting facts for the investigation. The butler had been talking with the neighbours from 3:00 to 4:00. Yukiko and Takayoshi had arrived just a bit before Mrs Tsujimura and her guests had come and had tried to enter the study, but with the door locked they had gone down again. Toshimitsu had arrived around 2:00 but with his son in the study and his daughter-in-law out, he had spent the time watching TV in the living room. Mrs Tsujimura had left the house around one.<p>

Harry, Heiji and Kogoro were intently listening to the stories the others were telling for their alibis. Harry was also inspecting the room more closely. This didn't have any magical connection; his charm had come up negative. So there had to be a perfectly logical way to commit this crime. There were no impossible crimes. He looked at the shelves and noticed that the books that had been placed on the desk were taken out in a bulk randomly. Then there was the opera that had been played by the hi-fi unit.

Regarding the massive collection of CDs the victim had really loved classic music. He saw a photo of the Tsujimuras that had obviously been taken years before. Megure was told by Mrs Tsujimura that the photo was twenty years old and had nothing to do with the case.

He went over the suspects mentally. From the assumed time of death the butler and the wife had alibis. Which left the son and his girlfriend and the father of the victim. But something didn't add up to him. He would find it out. He was sure of it.

"Inspector, we found something strange with the pendant of the key." One of the policemen securing evidence called out.

"What?" Megure shouted.

They were shown that the pendant could be opened sideways. Inside the pendant was a piece of sellotape which had a small bulge in the middle. Harry and Heiji both inspected the pendant. Then Harry was shortly distracted by Conan behaving strangely. He seemed to be in pain.

"Ran, please take Conan to another room where he can lie down. He doesn't seem to be well enough to stay up at the moment." He told her.

"Okay, Harry." She answered.

Meanwhile Heiji was running towards the door looking at the rift under the door. He looked pleased and seemed to have found out what could have been the trick. When Ran turned to Conan to take him into another room, Conan collapsed on the ground.

"Conan!" Ran shouted.

Harry felt Conan's forehead.

"Shit he has a high fever. Ran, call a doctor. I will take him to a room with a bed."

Harry turned to Takayoshi.

"Is here a room where the boy can rest?" He asked.

"He can take the bed in my room; it is the room at the end of the floor." Takayoshi answered.

Harry took Conan onto his arms and was about to leave the room when Heiji came inside with a victorious grin on his face.

"I have solved it. The trick with the locked room and the identity of the murderer. Harry spotted a tangle of fishing line on his wrist. He knew now which theory Heiji had come up with. He didn't think that he was right. Once Conan was placed in bed, he left the room to inspect some of the other rooms.

* * *

><p>While Harry was out of the room shortly, Heiji started to demonstrate his trick. He took the key with the sellotape in the pendant and asked Inspector Megure to play the victim for his presentation. In the meantime Harry had searched three more rooms and always found fishing line. He now knew it was a set-up by the real culprit. But he still needed to find the murderer and prove his guilt.<p>

He returned to the room with his findings. He listened to Heiji's theory of the trick and watched the presentation. He immediately saw the flaw in it, but he let Heiji continue so he could think about the solution.

* * *

><p>Ran was kneeling next to the bed she had Conan placed in. He was glowing with fever. She was assuring him the doctor would be there soon. Shinichi was mentally complaining about the timing he was down with this cold. Then he felt a stinging pain inside him and started coughing heavily.<p>

Heiji meanwhile was explaining and demonstrating his take on the happenings.

"The murderer," Heiji explained, "killed his victim with the poisoned needle they had found and then placed it on the floor."

Heiji then used a needle to get the fishing line through the inner pocket of Inspector Megure's pants, who played the victim for the demonstration, and placed the Inspector on the chair. Heiji took both ends of the fishing line and the key and walked backwards out of the door. He closed the door with both ends of the fishing line in his hands through the rift under the door. He pretended to lock the door with the key and placed it on the ground. In the pendant the fishing line was fixed by the sellotape. Heiji pulled at the end of the line with the needle on it and the key went through under the door along with the fishing line that was pulled in by Heiji. The key went up the desk an into the pants' pocket of Inspector Megure. Heiji finished his demonstration by pulling hard on the fishing line and therefore separating it from the pendant. He rolled it up around his hand.

Heiji opened the door and concluded his presentation with how this showed how the illusion of the locked room had been created. Heiji looked at Harry challengingly. He was absolutely sure he had beaten the other high school detective.

"You have a little error in your theory, Hattori." Harry stated calmly.

"And what error would that be, Black?" Heiji asked.

"You forgot the position the key was in when we found the corpse. The key and the pendant were folded over each other. That can never be imitated by that trick, even if the key were to go deep inside the pocket of the inspector by coincidence. Inspector Megure, would you please take out the key now?" Harry asked.

Megure did it and to everyone's surprise the key fell out of the outer pocket.

"But why? I am sure I pushed the needle through the inner pocket." Heiji said shocked.

* * *

><p>In the room where Conan was, he was felling his heart beating very fast and the pain in his chest was getting worse. Shinichi feared he would die. Ran ran out of the room to get the doctor.<p>

* * *

><p>Harry started explaining why Heiji's theory didn't work.<p>

"The reason the trick didn't work is that Inspector Megure sat when you pulled the key into the room. The pocket was folded when he sat, making it too tight for the key to get through. When it was stuck the fishing line slipped out under the sellotape before the key could reach the inner pocket. Additionally the victim was more corpulent than the Inspector, which increases that effect. I think you found the fishing line in the living room right?" Harry asked Heiji.

Heiji nodded. Ran came into the room looking for Conan who somehow had disappeared. Harry had to concentrate on the case now to get Shinichi help soon.

"Well, I searched three other rooms in the house and also found some tangles of fishing line." He showed the three tangles. "If I understand correctly you suspect Toshimitsu Tsujimura of being the culprit, because he would have been the only one who could have committed the crime with the trick you showed. If that trick had been used, you would be right. But the trick was another one." Harry said.

"He is right." A voice from the door sounded and all those present were very surprised to see Shinichi Kudo standing there. Harry, while not understanding how this was possible was so used to cover for Shinichi that he just grinned.

"You couldn't stay away after I told you about the challenge Hattori gave you? I told you, you should have stayed in bed to cure your cold." Harry scolded.

"Sorry, but what you told me about him, made me think it would be better if I came in person. Not that I doubt your deduction skills, Harry. You obviously have solved the case already." Shinichi said.

Ran was looking at Shinichi with mixed feelings.

"Where were you?" She shouted. "First you just disappear and then you turn up here. Do you know how worried I was?"

"Please don't cry." Shinichi said.

"Why not?" She asked.

"I am also interested; did you only come to say that I was wrong? That your friend already did. And how would you know?" Heiji stated.

"Wait a moment, Ran, it won't take long." Shinichi said looking at Ran, sweating a lot.

Harry knew that whatever had happened with Shinichi didn't rid him of his cold.

"Okay, I will continue with my deductions. I assume Conan called you before he fell ill?" Harry asked Shinichi and got a nod.

"Well, the murderer intended to have everybody believe that the trick Hattori demonstrated was used to create a locked room. But considering the details that don't fit, which I pointed out a few moments ago, we have to find another way for the murder to have happened. Thankfully there are enough traces of the real trick the murderer used." Harry stated.

"I guess you are speaking of the books on the table and the loud opera I was told was playing when you came into the room?" Shinichi asked.

Harry nodded.

"Hey, my show this time. Even if you can solve cases from afar by being told the details by my cousin." Harry complained playfully.

Shinichi grinned.

"Sorry, bad habit. Go on, Harry." Shinichi apologized.

"Thank you. As my friend with the bad habits said, the pile of books was taken out of the shelves randomly, the opera was playing loudly and they only had one purpose. To mask the possibly cry of pain and the pained face of the victim."

"Ha, ha, ha, really? Whose eyes and ears would the murderer have had to deceive at the time of the murder?" Heiji asked.

"That's easy. Yours!" Harry stated shocking Heiji.

"Don't' you mean yours, Harry?" Shinichi couldn't help himself asking.

"Yes, mine too. Add to them those of Mr Mori, Ran and Conan. After all the murder was committed in front of our eyes."

"I-in front of our eyes?" Ran asked.

"You don't mean …" Heiji started realizing what Harry was insinuating.

"You seem to get it. The murderer was the person who first went to Mr Tsujimura, his wife Kimie Tsujimura." Harry said pointing at her.

The butler and the rest of the family were shocked at the news.

"So Mr Tsujimura was still alive when we entered the room?" Kogoro asked.

"Yes, he had been drugged by his wife before she left the house to get you. When she pretended to wake him up, she pierced him with the poisoned needle into his neck and the poison, potent as it was, killed him within seconds." Harry explained.

"Obviously a very strong sleeping drug if none of you noticed it. With the books and the music as the contingency plan she was risking little." Shinichi commented.

"Wouldn't we find out the trick during the autopsy? I mean the sleeping drug would be found." Megure asked.

"No, we wouldn't. We would have assumed that the drug had been given to the victim to prevent him struggling against the poisoned needle, after all we had assumed he had already been dead when we walked into the room." Heiji said who now put the things together.

"All of this is a really nifty illusion. The detective was called to a seemingly locked crime site and would of course think nobody would be as bold as to commit the murder directly in front of his eyes. That's what you are trying to say, Black, isn't it?" Heiji addressed Harry.

"Correct." Harry answered.

"And what proof do you have for your little theory?" Heiji wanted to know. "Wouldn't we have noticed if Mrs Tsujimura had drawn a needle? Especially you with your gift of observation?"

"Ah, you have to admit that is a very good question, Harry. For 'The Hawk' to be deceived like that." Shinichi said.

"Thanks a lot, Shinichi. You know how she did it. There is only one possibility that I could have overlooked it. She drew the needle together with the key."

Harry held out the key of Mr Tsujimura to demonstrate.

"The pendants of the keys are the same type, they both can be opened. Would you please show us your key pendant, Mrs Tsujimura, or to be more precise, the inside?" Harry asked.

Megure took action and took the key from her. When he opened the pendant, he found a groove in it.

"Without doubt the poisoned needle was hidden in there. This way she was able to draw the needle together with the key, making sure nobody would notice it. The pendant with the groove is the irrefutable proof that Mrs Tsujimura is the murderer." Harry said.

"But why did she do it? What was her motive to kill her husband?" Megure asked.

"I am not sure, but I think it has something to do with this old photo." Harry said, showing the photo to them all. "If you look closely, doesn't Mrs Tsujimura resemble somebody extremely?" He asked.

Megure realized what Harry meant.

"How is that possible? Except for the hair colour, she looks exactly like Miss Yukiko." Megure exclaimed.

"What please?" Yukiko asked.

"But that can't be." Takayoshi said.

"Megure just pointed at the picture.

"Of course she looks like me; after all, Yukiko is my daughter." Mrs Tsujimura confessed.

"What?" Was a collective disbelieving shout from those present.

Harry used the time everybody was distracted to cast a diagnosis charm on Shinichi. He really needed bed rest. His body functions were chaotic. Harry wasn't sure if the transformation back to his real form was permanent.

When Megure asked if her husband Isao was Yukiko's father, she denied and told them that Yukiko was her daughter from her first marriage. Isao had blamed her former husband, the diplomat Kenji Yamashiro for a corruption scandal twenty years ago. Her husband had died in prison fifteen years ago. The intention of Isao Tsujimura had been to get rid of his rival and winning his rival's wife, her, for himself. She hadn't known about it and when her daughter Yukiko had been taken away from her by her husband's relatives she had been destroyed. She fell for the advances of him and became his wife.

She only later found out when Takayoshi brought home a picture of his girlfriend. She had thought the similarities were a coincidence, but her husband had been furious. He had shouted he would never allow for Takayoshi to be together with 'that man's daughter'. She asked him about it and he confessed what he had done back then with his father's help. She had only wanted to take revenge on the two people who had destroyed her life and were responsible for her husband's death.

"I wanted to take the blame when I realized what had happened. I wanted to repent for my guilt. I have changed Kimie:" Toshimitsu said ashamed.

"That's too late, father. Kenji died innocently in prison." She countered.

"Takayoshi, I know I don't have the right to ask you this, but please, take good care of Yukiko." She asked as a last request.

"Y-Yes." He agreed.

Yukiko was crying.

"I understand. She only behaved harshly towards Yukiko so nobody would find out she was her daughter. The murder was revenge and for the best of her daughter. Right, Black?" Heiji asked, only to watch Harry looking at Shinichi intently.

Shinichi was leaning on the shelf, coughing harshly. Ran walked over.

"Are you really okay, Shinichi?" Ran asked.

"Just a cold, Ran. I will live." He answered.

"But how were you informed so well about the details of the case?" Heiji asked.

"Harry's cousin called me. He thought it would be best if I came to help with the case because you were sprouting nonsense about me, Hattori. He said while Harry did explain how I could know about things; it would mean more to Ran if she heard it from me directly." Shinichi said.

Harry silently congratulated his best friend for coming up with that excuse.

"So, you really…" Ran began with tears in her eyes.

"Of course, Ran. I am a detective and I know you. Even if Harry wouldn't tell me how you are, I can tell it just by hearing your voice." He assured her. "And I thought you would like to know more about what I did, so I didn't realize that you could think something wrong if I didn't ask about you, I'm sorry."

Then he started coughing again.

"Wait, Shinichi, I will get the doctor." Ran said, concerned for him and left the room.

"I have to admit, I lost. Both your deduction skills were superior to mine this time." Heiji admitted.

"Idiot." Shinichi said. "There isn't winning or losing, no better or worse. Because there always is only one truth." Shinichi stated.

"Well, I definitely know you are better at phrasing smart statements than me." Harry added grinning.

"Smartass." Shinichi countered.

"You are right; it seems I was too concerned with winning." Heiji said.

Shinichi got a massive coughing fit. Heiji and Harry looked at him worried. Then Shinichi looked like he had been hit by lightning and his face contorted from pain. Harry knew that probably something with the transformation was going wrong.

"Shinichi, go home and get into bed." Harry ordered him.

Shinichi nodded and tumbled a bit, only for Harry to help him by draping his arm over his shoulder.

"Better I get you there. Hattori, tell the others I took Shinichi home and will meet them at the police station." He said to Heiji. "And keep Shinichi's involvement a secret. This was my case and he was just a visitor."

"If you are sure. What about Ran?"

"I will inform her later."

Harry got Shinichi out of the room.

"The same what happened to transform you into this form?" He softly asked Shinichi.

"Yes, I feel like I am burning from inside and my bones are melting. Ran can't see me like this."

"Don't worry; I just need to get you somewhere where you can transform without anybody noticing." Harry said. He got Shinichi downstairs and heard Ran coming closer.

"Shit. In there, I will distract her." He said and pushed Shinichi into the washroom.

Harry went outside so he could pretend to have sent Shinichi home with a taxi. Then he returned inside.

"Harry, where is Shinichi?" Ran asked.

"I called a taxi and sent him home. He will lie down and I will look after him, once I got some medicine from the pharmacy. By the way, he insisted that nobody was to find out that he was involved in this case, after all I solved it. He just made some witty comments this time. I will inform Megure." Harry said.

Ran nodded.

"Do you know where Conan is? I haven't seen him and I wanted the doctor to have a look at him."

"Did you check the bathrooms and washrooms upstairs?" Harry asked.

"No, that would be possible. Would you do the same with the ones down here?"

"Of course."

* * *

><p>Harry waited until Ran was back upstairs then, he looked inside the washroom. Shinichi had returned to being Conan. And he didn't look well.<p>

"Okay, I got it solved, they all think you went back home to take medicine. We will tell Ran that you got better and returned to your case. How do you feel?"

"Dreadful." He brought out and collapsed into Harry's arms.

Harry lifted him and carried him upstairs.

"Ran, I found Conan." Harry shouted.

* * *

><p>Ran and the doctor came to him and the doctor started examining Conan. He stayed unconscious until they got back to the detective agency. Harry made sure that Megure didn't mention Shinichi in his report. Once the reports were done with, he went home to get the finished pepper-up potion. He also called his martial arts teacher to apologize for not being there today and explained it with the bad cold of Conan whom he had taken care of. He pretended to have gone over to Shinichi first, then he went to the Mori's. He told Ran that Shinichi had taken his medicine, but that somebody from the case he had investigated had called to call him back, because a new lead had come up.<p>

When Ran was looking depressed at the news, he reassured her that Shinichi would surely solve the case someday soon and return. She nodded and let Harry watch over Conan for some time. Harry used the opportunity to first flush Shinichi's system from other medicine and then made him swallow the pepper-up potion. He didn't want to risk any side effects from mixing two different kinds of medicine. But with wizards potions worked a lot better than muggle medicine. He also confiscated the Chinese liquor to do some analysis. The liquor had to be the conductor for the transformation.

As Megure had promised, Shinichi's name hadn't been mentioned in the press, therefore nobody in the black organization would find out about him surviving their attempt to kill him.

* * *

><p><strong>And done. Till next time, though it can take some time as I have to write some parts for the next chapter, it's about 75 % done.<strong>


	17. Aftermath

**Hi, here is the next chapter. Hope you like it.**

* * *

><p><strong>Aftermath<strong>

After Ron's report about the hunt for the horcrux, which he had given Hermione for safe keeping, he told them about the incident at the gates of the castle. The other members of the Order that remained were shocked to learn that Snape had been oath bound by Dumbledore and got out of his oath because Dumbledore overlooked that fact that the murder of Lily Potter voided it.

"So the ironclad reason he had for trusting Snape was the oath he had tricked him into giving." Arthur said. "I wouldn't have thought it was something like that. In hindsight it looks like Albus wasn't as good as I thought he was."

"I am sure he only did it to defeat the Death Eaters and You-Know-Who. After all, it was invaluable to have a spy that couldn't betray you in his ranks." Minerva said.

Ron told them what he remembered and mentioned that Dumbledore had planned to do a ritual; he didn't know what kind though, with Snape. He just couldn't remember what that stone was they had talked about. He had been busy sneering at Malfoy and not really heard much of what Snape had said. He hadn't spoken very loud after all.

"So we are left with the rest of the horcruxes." Hermione said. She was holding the locket Dumbledore and Ron had got in the cave.

"I think we should destroy this one first before we try finding the others. We have Professor Dumbledore's memories in his pensieve and in some vials and probably can figure out where they could be hidden. He said he thought that they were the locket, Hufflepuff's cup, the snake, the ring, the diary and something of Gryffindor or Ravenclaw." She listed.

"What good would it do us? We aren't strong enough to take down an opponent like You-Know-Who, even if he was mortal." Ron spat.

"Easy. At the moment we are at a clear disadvantage. Many of the Order have lost faith in Professor Dumbledore's qualification to lead the light in the war. The group that is recognised as the only true resistance is Freedom under Remus Lupin. But if we manage to destroy all the horcruxes, render You-Know-Who mortal and take him out in an ambush, we would be the heroes that rescued Great Britain.

"And remember, it was the defeat of Grindelwald that brought Dumbledore in the position of power he had in the end. If Harry hadn't found out last year what was planned for him, Dumbledore's plan would have worked perfectly. Harry would have taken care of the job to destroy the horcruxes with our help, in the end You-Know-Who would have killed him as he was a horcrux too, and Dumbledore and us would have taken care of the rest." Explained Hermione.

"Now think; we have the biggest amount of information on You-Know-Who and his way to cheat death. I doubt anybody else knows it. We can search them based on the memories we have left from Dumbledore, we have the school as our base which You-Know-Who can't get into if Professor McGonagall immediately takes over the position of headmistress, and we still have the money Dumbledore stored at the castle as he didn't trust the goblins. If we get this done, we will be able to choose what we want to do in life. We will have more than enough money and power. As I see it, it is the only real possibility for us to get some of the things we had hoped for when we agreed to follow Professor Dumbledore."

Molly nodded. The girl was right. Not many were in the position to do the important strikes against You-Know-Who. This could end beneficial for them in the end. And they deserved the money.

"I think we should follow Hermione's plan. After all, we can't just sit back and do nothing. We start by analysing the memories Albus collected and try finding the horcruxes. But first I think we should take care of this one." Minerva pointed at the locket in Hermione's hands.

"Agreed. Who wants to stab it?" Arthur asked, taking the sword of Gryffindor out of its case.

"I want to. I risked my life getting it from that cave." Ron said.

The others nodded and he took the sword.

"I think we should open it, don't you?" Hermione asked.

They nodded. Hermione opened the locket and to their utmost surprise they found a small piece of parchment folded in the locket.

"Eh, should I stab it now?" Ron asked stupidly.

"Wait; let me first see what that parchment is about." Arthur said and took the parchment.

He unfolded it and began to read out loud after he paled rapidly.

"Listen:

_To the Dark Lord_

_I know I will be dead long before you read this, but I want you to know that it was I who discovered your secret. I have stolen the real horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as I can. I face death in the hope that when you meet your match you will be mortal once more. R.A.B._

That's the message." Arthur said.

"You mean all of this was for nothing?" Ron protested, while Hermione sat in her chair resigned.

The others didn't look much better either. They had to come to terms with the fact that Dumbledore had died in vain. Somebody else had taken the locket, but they weren't sure if it was really destroyed. How would they be able to find somebody only based on the initials R.A.B.?

* * *

><p>Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood sat in the Room of Requirement; currently it resembled a small cosy room with a small fireplace, two comfortable armchairs and a table with two cups of tea and a plate with biscuits in the middle. Neville had asked Luna there because tomorrow after the funeral of the manipulator the Hogwarts Express would return them to their homes.<p>

"Okay, we need to make sure on the train that all the members of Liberty are prepared for the holidays. We have given everybody new communications devices so we can call for help if anything happens. The ones who will organize the responses are also elected and everybody has trained hard over the year. We can expect that Voldemort will try to completely take over the Ministry sooner rather than later. I think it is only a matter of time." Neville said.

Luna nodded.

"You are right. I think it would be best if we first concentrated on the escape routes for the muggleborns. We know Voldemort hates them and sees them as lower beings. If he truly manages to take over the Ministry I bet they will be first targets of the new regime. And Hogwarts won't be safe either. I know that Freedom is doing what they can and they have taken out a good number of Death Eaters already. I wish we would know what the Order remains are planning right now in the headmistress' office." She said, only for a sheet of parchment to fall in her lap, courtesy of the Room of Requirement.

"Thank you, Hogwarts." Luna said and began reading the parchment.

"They are planning to find and destroy the horcruxes that Voldemort made, which kept him alive when the killing curse rebounded. That is bad, but the nargles around the Room of Requirement have left so somebody already got the one in here some time ago." She analysed.

"You mean one was hidden here at Hogwarts? Interesting. Do you have an idea who it could have been?" Neville asked, knowing that Luna sometimes just knew things.

"The totem of death, of course." She answered.

Neville didn't understand.

"What is the totem of death?" He asked.

"The leader of the saviours of the wizarding world. Hm, I think Hogwarts is up to something telling me that." She pondered.

Neville filed that information away under things that made Luna special.

"That sounds as ominous as the prophecy Harry warned me about. Does Hogwarts by any chance know the true prophecy?" He asked Luna.

"Of course she does. Hogwarts, would you please be so nice to give us the wording of the true prophecy that was spoken in your halls?" Luna asked politely.

Another parchment landed in her lap.

"Thank you very much, Hogwarts." She said and read the true prophecy.

"Interesting. Do you want to hear it, Neville?" She asked airily.

"Yes, please tell me, Luna." Neville answered.

"_The saviours of the wizarding world will come … born with the power to vanquish the dark Lords … born on two sides of the world … one born to those who thrice defied the dark Lord veiled by darkness… born as the seventh month dies … one born to the brightest mind and the magical actress … born in the middle of spring … and both will be betrayed by the dark Lord hidden in light … but together they will unite what was forcefully divided … guided by the totem of death … they will bring down the power of the dark Lords… born on two sides of the world." _She read out.

"That is definitely a lot different from the one Harry told me he got from Dumbledore. Fitting that it was all a load of shit. We should send Harry a letter through the goblins. Perhaps he already knows, but if not, he needs to know this. I will take care of that tomorrow right after we arrive in London." Neville said.

"That would be best. Back to our other plans. As we don't know the first thing about where the horcruxes could be and I know that Harry knows more and is already doing something about it, we should concentrate on our part. I have arranged for the leaders of our group 'Liberty' and Remus Lupin's 'Freedom' to meet in three days. From what we overheard Malfoy sprout before he ran away with the other Death Eaters if you believe Weasley, Voldemort will need a few weeks until he is ready to take over the Ministry and therefore the power in Great Britain. That will give us enough time to evacuate the muggleborns we know about to France. You had organized everything with Madame Maxime?" He asked

"Yes, she is more than willing to assist us to get the muggleborns settled in France. Their Ministry thinks ours is a joke anyway and they are gleeful to help those that will come over to get away from the persecution. If Dumbledore was good for one thing it was stalling Voldemort. But we also know that it was only a question of time until he used his contacts in the Ministry to take them over. The muggleborns will take the train to France through the Chunnel or will travel by plane and will be welcomed in Paris by Madame Maxime and some of her helpers. Those that still need schooling will be enrolled in Beauxbatons; the others will be helped to find jobs to get them enough money to survive." Luna summarized.

"Very good. I don't understand why nobody thought of an operation like that before though. I mean, we knew the main targets of the Death Eaters. Getting them away so they wouldn't be targeted anymore for a period of time until they could come back would have saved many lives back in the first war." Neville complained.

"Stupid bigots in the Ministry not caring for them and not being capable of setting up such a simple but still brilliant plan. Harry would be proud of us for getting all this set up." She answered smiling.

"That he would be. I will enclose the plans we made to help with the war in my letter. I think he would like to keep informed. I hope he will come back and help us to fight them. With Liberty and Freedom at his side we would be able to make them rue the decision to try and take away our freedom and terrorizing the population." Neville wishfully told her.

"Oh, he will come back. He isn't the kind of person who would leave his friends to fend for themselves. He will help us. But I don't know if he will stay after his work is done." She said.

"Possible. If he is happy where he is right now, I wouldn't blame him." Neville agreed.

* * *

><p>Right at the moment Harry listened to Shinichi when he told him how Heiji Hattori had found out about his identity during the Sherlock Holmes Tour he had participated in over the last weekend. To make things easier Shinichi had asked Hattori if he would come over the next weekend to discuss some things that were important for Heiji to know.<p>

"You really have the worst of luck, Shinichi." Harry told him.

"I know, but there simply was no possibility to narcotise Kogoro like I normally do and contrary to the police that I normally have to deal with, Hattori is a skilled detective. And I couldn't risk him telling Ran about my secret." Shinichi admitted.

"Yes, that would have been bad, especially after the weekend at Mori's class reunion." Harry commented.

Shinichi blushed. He had been forced by Ran to bath with her in the hot springs and had seen her naked. If she ever found out about him being Shinichi that would end painful for him.

"Okay, we will brief him next weekend. I can tell my teachers at the hospital that I will be absent. At least he is intelligent enough to understand the reasons why you have to keep everything a secret. By the way, the analysis of the liquor is finished. I have managed to separate four possible parts in the liquor that could be the reason that you transformed back temporarily. I will need to do some experiments to find the one that did, but I am now pretty sure that you are only still alive because you are magical.

"The components I spoke about are all based on magical plants that are also common ingredients in muggle products. They only show their magical properties if they get in contact with magical beings. My guess is that whenever a magical being is forced to take the poison, it will transform back into its child form. But if the victim doesn't have magic, it dies. The only way I could check my theory would be to get my hands onto the poison itself. And I am no potions master. But with the need to keep this absolutely quiet, I can't ask my teacher too much." Harry said.

"That's okay. I am glad that you made progress with the analysis. Perhaps we get lucky the next time we cross paths with the organization." Shinichi said.

"Yeah, that would be good. Any news from your father about his investigation through Interpol?" Harry asked.

"Nothing new. While they know about the organization, they don't know where they could find the members. They are too skilled to hide." Shinichi answered.

"Too bad. We can only hope that we stumble over a new case with them included soon. By the way, how are you coming along with the summoning charm?" Harry asked.

"I have it pretty much down. Do you think I could use the charm to summon the poison when I next find them?" He asked excitedly.

"It is a possibility that I came up with recently. Of course you would have to have Gin distracted to summon the poison. If he noticed it flying away from him, it would be bad for us. First he could find out about the magical world, which we don't want him to do, and second, if he followed the poison, he could find us. Best would be in some kind of struggle where it could just have fallen down." Harry explained.

"Okay, that will be tricky. We will have to wait and see what opportunity we get." Shinichi agreed.

* * *

><p>Voldemort was feeling strange. It was as if he was deprived of part of his strength. It had started just after Dumbledore had died. But what did the death of the old fool have to do with his power? The only one he had a connection with was Potter. Could he have done something? No, impossible. The boy didn't have the abilities to deprive him of part of his power. He was only still alive because others had sacrificed themselves for him.<p>

He had looked up theories why he could feel weaker than before. He hadn't found an answer so far. At least he had got an answer for the effect between his and Potter's wands at the graveyard. To think the cores of their wands were twins. Feathers of the same phoenix. Who would have thought? Well, if you believed Ollivander he just had to use another wand. He had put Ollivander to work on that part. After all, he couldn't be expected to use just anybody's wand; he was the Dark Lord after all. In a week his new wand would be ready, but that didn't matter. Potter had left the country and wouldn't be a problem until he came back, if he ever did.

There was the possibility that the boy simply had enough of all the manipulations and behaviour of the wizarding world here in Britain. He had questioned his followers that knew Potter, first of all Severus. While Severus had a lot of contempt for the abilities of Potter he didn't dare to tell anything that wasn't the complete truth to his master. From the beginning Dumbledore had done everything to form Potter into a malleable weapon. He had been left with the Dursleys, Potter's muggle relatives, who neglected and abused the boy. From what Severus told him they didn't beat him, but starved him.

Voldemort felt reminded of his childhood. Who would have thought Potter and him were so similar? Then the old fool sent that oaf Hagrid to collect Harry when the muggles prevented him from reading his Hogwarts letter. The stupid half-giant was likeable enough for the boy and with collecting the Philosopher's Stone from Gringotts while he had the boy with him, the curiosity of Potter was intended to be spiked. Well, that part worked. Hagrid forgot to tell Potter how to reach platform 9 ¾ and Dumbledore sent the Weasleys to get him on the train.

The Weasleys, being bought by Dumbledore to assist in his plan, helped the boy and the youngest boy, Ronald made sure to be in the same compartment on the train as Potter. It was imperative for Dumbledore's plan that Potter was sorted into Gryffindor. It worked and the boy was subtly watched by Weasley all the time. Over the years Potter was led through the training courses of the headmaster, now the ridiculously easy obstacles to protect the stone made sense to him (Voldemort). They were meant to prepare Potter for the last confrontation where Potter was meant to die and take him with into death or at least weaken him enough for Dumbledore to kill him.

Just somehow Potter had managed to escape the net. Nobody had suspected that the boy could be as smart as he was. He had to admit the plan was worthy of a Slytherin.

Contrary to the suspicions Dumbledore had told Snape, who had then informed him about them, Voldemort didn't think that Potter just started his plan in fifth year. He knew of the Room of Requirement. Thankfully nobody else would suspect that he had hidden one of his horcruxes in one version of it. How would they; nobody even knew of his horcruxes. The room couldn't slow down time in the scale Potter would have needed to prepare as well as he did. No, he had started way before.

Dumbledore never understood that abused children developed sneakiness as a method to protect themselves early in their lives. So if he had been Potter and had been offered to live in a world where he could escape his miserable life in the muggle world, he would find out as fast as possible how to do it. The boy had had the opportunity for his whole first year at school. The books had been there for him to find. And with him having an invisibility cloak since Christmas, it would have been extremely easy. And children that had to work for their so called family were used to getting little sleep.

So for Potter to learn during one night a week, perhaps two if you included Fridays would have been easy. Sadly many wizards lacked the logic to figure that out. While the restricted section had an alarm, the normal one didn't. So much information for Potter to learn like he wanted to. Then the old man had got a second spy, the know-it-all mudblood Granger. She fit perfectly in the plan. Weasley would keep Potter on a low level and she would be so bossy about learning and being the best that Potter wouldn't want to show her up. With two so different friends he was more or less forced to be average. But that was still better than pretending to be stupid to not show up his muggle cousin.

Over time Dumbledore made sure that in case Harry died he, the Weasleys and the mudblood would get the Potter fortune. It could even have worked because the Ministry had trusted Dumbledore blindly. The escape of the blood traitor Black was a thorn in the old man's plan, but it had worked out in the end and he had managed to look like the good one and the Ministry like the bad ones.

Of course Dumbledore could have forced a trial for Black through. He couldn't force the Minister to pardon Black, but as the head of the Wizengamot he could have ensured the trial, but that didn't fit into his plans. Without the support of Black, Potter was easier to control.

When Severus had reported that Potter had got straight O's in all the subjects offered at Hogwarts, he had laughed hard. A hidden genius. With the information that Granger had had a time-turner in her third year for her studies it was easy to conclude that Potter somehow made a copy for himself. There were spells out there to copy the properties of a magical object. They didn't work on everything, but on an object like a time-tuner they would. It would enable Potter to take the classes without anybody noticing him doing the work for them. He had to applaud Potter for that bit of deception. He slipped out of the old man's control without the man even suspecting anything. But where he was now, even he couldn't deduct that.

But it didn't really matter. As long as he didn't show himself, he couldn't disrupt his plans. And the plan to take over the Ministry was close to completion. They had their puppet to become Minister ready. Pius Thicknesse was under the imperius curse by Yaxley and as soon as they had killed Scrimgeour Britain would be theirs. He would place that toad Umbridge at the head of a persecution operation against muggleborns and over the period of a year at most they would have got rid of them all. Hogwarts would be his to control and the children of the country would learn how to be proper wizards and witches, following the beliefs of Salazar Slytherin that only those of magical descent should be allowed to learn magic.

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><p><strong>That's it for this time, please review.<strong>


	18. Information

****Hi, this is the extra special Christmas update outside of my normal update schedule. I have decided to update all of my stories for which I had the next chapter (at least) ready. So you get six update over all as well as a new story! Merry Christmas.****

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><p><strong>Information<strong>

Harry, Sirius and Shinichi were sitting in some chairs at the hospital room of Masami Hirota or whatever the woman's true name was. The healers had informed them that they would wake her up today. Her injuries had been healed and the only thing that remained to be done was resting to regain her strength after having been unconscious for two and a half months. But the three wanted to get as much information as they could from her. There hadn't been many clues that they had found, they only knew the code-names of the two that had poisoned Shinichi, Gin and Vodka. With the help of the healers, who had found out that the woman was a squib and therefore magical healing methods worked well, they would see if she could be questioned.

When the healer in charge of the woman spelled a potion that would wake her up into her system the group waited anxiously. It took about fifteen minutes before she opened her eyes and then she was disorientated. She tried sitting up, but failed.

"Don't try to move. Your body is weak after being in a coma for two and a half months." The healer said.

"Where am I?" She asked.

"You're in the Tokyo Clinic, a wizarding hospital." The healer said.

"A magical hospital? But how? I live in the muggle world and have no contact with wizards." She asked.

"We were contacted by the ones that found you in your critical state. Mr Black used a stasis spell to stabilize you until professional help could arrive. He saved your life with that action." The healer explained and pointed at Harry.

Her eyes widened hearing that. She remembered what had happened. She had been shot by one of the higher ups of the organization because she hadn't been useful for them anymore. She had been betrayed and her sister still wouldn't be let gone. All of this had been for nothing.

"I can see that you remember what happened. What we would like to offer you is a deal." Sirius said, being the oldest one of the group. The boys had agreed to let him handle the deal.

"What kind of deal?" She asked suspiciously.

"The organization thinks you are dead. We faked a newspaper article that a female unknown corpse was found close to the position where you were shot. For them you are dead. You can disappear and they would never know if you changed your appearance a bit and took a new name. We would assist you with magical means of disguise which they would never be able to see through. What we want in return is information. As much as you can give us, because we have also met the organization and won't be able to avoid meeting them again. They boys have the bad habit to find trouble by not even looking for it and they simply can't stand by when crimes are committed." Sirius pointed at Harry and Shinichi.

"I accept, but I have one request. I have a younger sister; she is eighteen and a scientist for the organization. She is one of their brightest minds and the reason I did the robbery was that it was the deal I made with the organization. If I managed to get them one billion Yen they would let me and my sister go from the organization. But they betrayed me. They only used me; probably they had planned to kill me from the beginning, because I had enabled a FBI agent to infiltrate the organization. He was my boyfriend and I had found out about him being from the FBI, but I loved him, so I ignored it and didn't tell anybody. I still do." She said.

"That makes sense. A FBI agent would be dangerous if he infiltrated the organization for some time. How long was he in the organization?" Harry asked.

"Three years. I think they had planned to catch one of the high ranking members, Gin, the one that shot me. But something went wrong and Dai had to flee. I'm sure he is one of their absolute top targets. I want you to help my sister get out of the organization. With magic that should be possible. If you get her to safety, I will tell you all I know. It isn't much, but I will do whatever is necessary to bring the organization down." She promised.

"How would we be able to contact your sister without making the organization suspicious?" Shinichi asked. "If they suspected anything they would follow her and kill all those they think are in the know."

"I have an e-mail address which she used for the organization. If I send her a coded message she would understand to be at a certain point at a certain time. We set this scenario up in case we found a way out of the organization. I would send the e-mail from an internet café to not give them the possibility to track me down, she would go to a meeting point and from there we would disappear. The problem was doing it unnoticed. I think she would know a lot more than I do. I wasn't even given a code-name, she was." The woman said.

"Alright, we can work with that. As long as the organization doesn't know about the magical world we should be able to hide both of you." Sirius agreed. "Perhaps not in Japan, but in another country it would be easy to let you disappear."

"That would be fine. Well, I guess I should start with what I know. My real name is Akemi Myano. My sister's name is Shiho. We got in contact with the organization through our parents who worked for them as scientists, but they died when my sister was very young. I was only thirteen. Shiho was sent to America to go to school while I stayed here in Japan. I was living a normal life, had friends and sometimes did some minor missions for the organization. I never was really involved in the big things. I know that they are involved in all kinds of crimes and that there is a strict hierarchy. Only a handful of people know who the boss is, the really high ranking members. The highest ranking one I know is Gin, he is a ruthless killer, but he is smart, really smart. That's what makes him so dangerous.

"From what I know he is directly under the boss. One of the few that knows who he is I think. His partner is called Vodka. A man for rough work. Then there are specialists like snipers, infiltrators, businessmen that use the organization for getting rid of opponents and supply it with money and information. Then there are scientists like my sister that work on different projects. The members of the organization as soon as they reach a certain rank normally wear mostly black. They all get assigned code-names that are alcoholics. I don't know others than Gin and Vodka though. My sister's code-name is Sherry." Akemi told them.

"Great, that's at least a bit. If we manage to get your sister out we would get even more information." Harry said smiling. "Perhaps we could even get in contact with your boyfriend and let the FBI help us."

"Perhaps, but let's not be hasty. So far you managed to slip under their radar, but that won't stay that way. We know that they have already searched Shinichi's house twice thanks to the surveillance charms." Sirius reminded them.

"They wouldn't have found anything." Shinichi said. "The house is dusty and nobody used water or electricity since the attempt to kill me. And how would anybody think of me shrinking back to a child?"

As Shinichi had told her his name when she had been injured there was no reason to keep it a secret.

"My sister was part of the team that searched your house. She was the one that developed the poison that seems to have been given to you. It was a failure from what she told me, but as it was really useful despite it having another purpose when it was developed, the organization wanted to have her continue the research." Akemi informed them.

Shinichi looked shocked and hopeful at the same time. If they got to Shiho, they would be able to find an antidote to the poison easier. While Harry was good, he wasn't an expert.

"That sounds promising. From what the healers guess you will be released in about two weeks. Then we can work on contacting your sister." Sirius said.

Akemi nodded. She really hoped that they would be able to get Shiho out of the organization.

For now she only could try getting healed. She wouldn't be of any use to Shiho or herself without being strong enough. She only hoped that Shiho didn't do anything stupid before she could get her out.

* * *

><p><strong>So, now Akemi is awake again. Will the group manage to get Shiho out? Will she still become Ai? Wait and see.<strong>


	19. A New Trail?

**A New Trail?**

It had taken Harry some time to convince Shinichi to not try transforming back into his normal form by using the liquor. Firstly the transformation was too instable and they couldn't risk Shinichi shrinking in front of others. Secondly, they knew nothing about the reaction. Harry wanted to be sure about what had triggered Shinichi's transforming back. And with how painful the process was for Shinichi, Harry wanted to be sure he went through it only once more.

Harry also suspected that Shinichi would build up immunity to the antidote if he used it too often. Grumbling Shinichi had given in, because Harry had promised him that he would start with some experiments with Shinichi's blood from when he had first taken the poison and the liquor. Something in the Bai Ganr had triggered the transformation and he would find out what it was and isolate it.

That Akemi Miyano had woken up and had agreed to help them had also played a part in that decision. With her sister being the one that had developed the poison as a side product to another experiment they had hope to develop an antidote as soon as they could get her to safety. But they needed to be careful in contacting her. They couldn't risk tipping the organisation off to the fact that Akemi was still alive. They would do all they could to kill her, no matter if innocents got into the line of fire. So far they were going to see if they could contact her in the way Akemi said in two weeks.

Shinichi's studies were going well. He had finished third year spells and would progress to fourth year now. Harry and Sirius had also started him on duelling training, now that he could use a basic repertoire of spells. Mostly Shinichi had to dodge the spells because his shield charm was too basic to help him much. But it worked well against the weaker curses.

* * *

><p>Today Harry had agreed to accompany Ran, Conan and Kogoro to the press conference of the Mantendo Company. It seemed one of the employees in the department where new games were created had had the idea to produce a game with Kogoro as a main character. The game was called Master Detective Mori's House of Mysteries'. The players were stuck at a house where a murder had happened and coincidentally Master Detective Mori was there as well and helped them with advice.<p>

Harry thought it was funny that now, thanks to Shinichi making Mori famous, he even got to be the main character in a computer game. The only problem at the moment was the state said Master Detective was in.

Ran was scowling at her father. He had obviously done a 'little' premature celebration and was suffering from sickness.

"Just leave me alone, Ran. Those five or six glasses. What was it again? Gin, Vodka, Bourbon,…" He counted on his fingers.

Harry saw Conan looking surprised.

"What?" Kogoro asked annoyed.

"Nothing." Conan answered.

Harry knew what was going through Shinichi's head. He was thinking about the code names of the two men in black that had shrunk him. Gin and Vodka. He had found out about them during a coincidental meeting at a train. They had exchanged briefcases with a client of their organization and then tried to blow up the train to destroy all evidence. But using a listening device in a chewing gum he had heard their code names. But since then Shinichi hadn't found any other hints after that and he was a little frustrated.

Ran called Conan to hurry as they had to hand over their rain coats and things they didn't want to carry around with them at the cloak room.

"It's really crowded here." Ran commented.

"What did you think it would be like? The whole game industry is assembled here." Kogoro replied.

Then a man addressed Kogoro.

"You are Mr Mori, aren't you?" He asked.

"Yes?" Kogoro replied.

"It's me, Nakajima from Mantendo. I am the creator of 'Master Detective Mori's House of Mysteries'." He introduced himself.

"Oh, yes, now I remember. We met during the project meetings." Kogoro recognized the man.

"The new game is the top topic with all the journalists. But that was to be expected. After all it is the first game where a real master detective appears." Nakajima said.

"Does the game also have a 'game over'?" Ran asked.

"Yes, if the player exceeds the time limit, master detective Mori falls asleep and the game is over. The player is then caught in the house forever." Nakajima explained.

Harry had to suppress a laugh. In real life Mori only solved his cases when he slept, thanks to Conan's tranquilliser watch.

Two of Nakajima's colleagues came over and exchanged some jibes with him. Especially Koji Ueda seemed to be a bit put out with him. Obviously he had been the one to first think about the idea to include Mori in a game, but Nakajima had taken the idea and presented it. And obviously Hironobu Takeshita had lost his former girlfriend during their time at the university to Nakashima. Kogoro got his cloak room ticket. A metal plate with his number, the ninety-six, on it.

Takeshita looked at his watch and realized that time was running out and he and Ueda decided that pressing forward would be their only chance to timely get to their posts. They advised Nakajima to do the same if he wanted to avoid trouble with their boss. They all handed the cloak room employee their black briefcases and explained the briefcases were part of the Mantendo equipment their boss had thought up to ingrain the company better into the memory of their clients. But the briefcases were too unhandy, so most of the employees left them at the cloak-room.

Sadly their boss appeared that moment and heard their comments about the briefcases. He made the three men very uncomfortable when they got their cloak-room tickets. They were swiftly chased to work while the boss talked a bit with Kogoro thanking him for the help he had given Mantendo with the game.

Ran was handed the ticket with the number one hundred and made a comment about having luck because of it. Harry took his ticket with the one hundred and one.

* * *

><p>They went into the presentation room and Nakajima and Kogoro, who was still feeling sick, presented the new game. Ran, Conan and Harry were trying different games. They went to a game where you could test how hard you could hit. Harry was the first one to be coaxed into hitting the air-bag, which measured the power you had used. Directly before Harry Nakajima gave a demonstration and got 348. He told them he had boxed during his university time. Harry then punched the bag and got 312.<p>

"You are also regularly going in for sports, right?" Takeshita asked.

"Yes, I am training in martial arts." Harry admitted.

"Oh, I didn't know that, Harry." Ran commented. "Which kind?"

"Mostly karate but I also train jujitsu. It comes in handy with my occupation." Harry said.

"What kind of occupation?" Nakajima asked.

"He is a high school detective." Ran answered before Harry could.

"High school detective? And your name is Harry? You are not by any chance, Harrison Black, 'The Hawk', are you?" Nakajima asked.

"Yes, I am." Harry admitted and was soon swarmed by some of his fans that wanted autographs.

Meanwhile Ran was coaxed to try the game by Takeshita, he said it was good for reducing stress.

"Stress?" Ran asked and then hit the airbag. "Get home Shinichi!" She yelled.

Her result was 400. Harry saw that Conan was really pale now. When Ran asked Conan if he also wanted to try it, he said he needed to go to the restroom. Nakajima offered to go there together. When they were looking for the restroom, they bumped into a giant of a man. He wore a black suit with a matching black hat that resembled greatly the one of Inspector Megure in its making.

Both Conan and Nakajima hurt, the man just walked on.

"Does he work for a game company too?" Conan asked.

"Well, I don't know him."

At the restroom Nakajima told Conan that he and the other two men had been in the same boxing club at university. He hadn't expected to meet them again at the same game company. Ueda also came to the restroom and made some new jibes at Nakajima.

* * *

><p>Conan separated from Nakajima and walked past the cloak-room. He watched as the giant asked for his things, he had the number 98 and got a Mantendo briefcase. Conan wondered why he didn't wear the Mantendo tie clip and why Nakajima didn't know him then. He then decided it wasn't his problem. He took a waste-bin to reach the drinks machine. He wanted to get Kogoro some tomato juice to help him get rid of his hangover.<p>

The man was using the telephone.

"It's me." The man said. "Tequila."

Conan reacted at the name of a liquor.

"The deal went as planned. … Yes I will be careful. … Don't worry Vodka; I will be with you tonight."

Conan dropped his wallet in shock.

"Tell Gin the same."

Conan's coins hit the ground when he realized that the man was working together with the men in black he was hunting. Gin and Vodka.

"That was a damned little boy, he let money drop to the ground." Tequila explained Vodka on the phone.

Shinichi was taking action. He pulled off the sticker with the listening device from the button of his jacket.

"Excuse me, could you please take your foot away? You are standing on my ten yen coin." He asked Tequila.

Tequila kicked him.

"What do you let them roll there, stupid child?" He asked.

Conan rubbed his hurt cheek. Well, he had managed to place the device under Tequila's shoe. He wanted to follow him immediately when he paused. The last time he went after one of the men in black he had been poisoned. And this time Harry was here. He could help him. With the device they could easily follow the man. Conan took out his handy and sent Harry a message. Better to not let Tequila get away too far.

He activated the radar on his glasses and turned in the frequency to eavesdrop on Tequila.

"Curious, … What's that shit? It doesn't open. … Huh, it's open?" Shinichi heard Tequila talking from the restroom.

Then he heard a strange sound, followed by an explosion. The shock wave grazed his cheek and when he looked around the corner he had been hidden behind, he was met with the view of the destroyed corridor.

'What the …?' He thought.

Harry read Shinichi's message and left Ran to look after her father and went to the restroom. Then he heard an explosion and was worried for Shinichi. He began running towards the cloud of dust that flowed from the corridor with the restrooms.

'No, please let Shinichi be okay.' He mentally prayed.

He reached the site of the explosion and saw Shinichi punching the ground with his fist. Okay, that probably meant his lead to the men in black was done for.

"Conan, are you hurt?" Harry asked.

Conan shook his head.

* * *

><p>Soon Inspector Megure arrived and took over the investigation. Conan had informed Harry about his findings so far and Harry knew that this was very bad luck. He had finally found a lead to the organization and now that.<p>

The policemen that analysed the explosion site told the Inspector their first information.

"A terrorist attack?" Megure asked.

"Yes, Inspector. The bomb was placed in the toilet on the window side of the building. We assume that the blasting composition was put at the door, or at least very close to it." The policeman answered.

"So it was an attack without a certain target…" The inspector mused.

"There was only one victim, a man." Was the next the policeman said.

"Do we know his identity?" Megure asked.

"No, there isn't much left of him. We don't have anything to identify him yet." Was the answer.

"Did you see anybody suspicious? After all you were the first to reach the site?" Megure asked Ueda, Nakajima and Takeshita.

"N-No." Takeshita said.

"There was nobody." Nakajima added.

"I know something." Conan piped up.

When Megure turned towards him, he continued.

"I didn't see anybody who was suspicious, but I saw the victim." He informed him.

"Is that true, Conan?" Megure asked surprised.

"Yes, it was a giant of a man with a height over two meters. He probably was from the Kansai region. You saw him too, didn't you Nakajima?" Conan asked.

"Huh?" Nakajima wondered.

"I mean the big man we bumped into on the corridor." Conan explained.

"Ah, yes, now I remember." Nakajima said uncomfortably.

"Why do you think he was from the Kansai region?" Megure asked.

"It was his accent. He said some things which sounded similar like how that high school detective from Osaka spoke. He said: 'Curious, What's that shit? It doesn't open. … Huh, it's open'. Probably he meant the door of the toilet." Conan told him.

"Yes, and it would also indicate that the explosion composition had been placed close to the door." Megure agreed.

While Conan deflected comments about his luck not to be caught in the explosion because he had been so close to it to hear the man, Harry was thinking what the motive could have been to blow up a member of the organization.

"Do we have any idea, why this attempt was done, Inspector?" Harry asked.

"No, not that I know of, Harrison." Megure answered.

"May I say something to that?" The president of Mantendo said from the opening in the wall.

"Boss?" Ueda and Nakajima asked surprised.

"Boss?" Asked Megure.

"Yes, I am the president of Mantendo Company, my name is Ishikawa. We wanted to hold a press conference today for our new games. Well, two days ago I got this strange letter." He said and opened his briefcase to take it out. He handed the letter to Megure.

"I had brought it with me today, because I wanted to show it to my colleagues for entertainment. I-I didn't think that it could be something serious." He admitted.

Megure looked at it and was shocked.

"A threatening letter?" He shouted. Harry looked over his shoulder to read the content of the letter.

'Cancel your press-conference or we will blow up the press-conference.'

"Why didn't you inform the police of this?" Megure yelled at Ishikawa.

"I thought it was just a bad joke." The president apologized.

"Inspector, we found those in the debris." A policeman held out a round, bended plate and a small key.

Harry looked at both and immediately identified the plate as one of the Mantendo briefcases. The key was also for one of the briefcases as the president confirmed. Harry noticed that the plate was bent outwards. That shouldn't be possible if the bomb had been placed at the door. It had to have been inside the briefcase to bend in that direction.

He looked at Conan, who obviously had come to the same conclusion. Ishikawa asked if the victim had been one of his employees as he had had one of their briefcases. Harry looked at Conan and signalled him to come out of the room with him. He took him aside and whispered to him.

"Don't do anything stupid. I know that you are yearning for another hint of the organization, but we still have a chance here. If the giant wanted to make a deal with somebody here and all the visitors and employees are still in the building we can still catch the other party of the deal. From what you told me, he took his briefcase from the cloak room. Do you remember the number?" Harry asked.

"It was 98." Conan answered.

"Are you sure?" Harry asked surprised.

"Yes, why?" Conan asked.

Harry took out his cloak room ticket with the 101. Shinichi understood.

"Then the one whose briefcase exploded, the one who wanted to kill the giant was one of the three that pushed between Ran and Kogoro." He realized.

"Yes. I don't know which one had the 98, but the culprit of the bomb explosion is either Ueda, Nakajima or Takeshita. If we found out which one has another ticket now, we would know who was included in the deal." Harry confirmed.

* * *

><p>They went to the cloak room and asked if the giant was the only one to take away his things. They also found out that the cloak room assistant fount it strange because he had got his briefcase back just after all the visitors had handed over their things. Harry nodded towards Conan. They had a good chance to find the other party of the deal now. With the police locking the building and nobody getting his things the culprit still had to be in the building.<p>

"Something is curious though." Conan said. "Why would the one to make the deal with Tequila choose this place if he wanted to kill him? The press conference of his company was here. He would risk becoming a suspect as he knew the location and could have planned it. And it would be logical that Tequila would check the content of the briefcase immediately."

"You are right, but what if it wasn't the one who was the second party in the deal who placed the bomb, but a third party, that wanted to kill the second party of the deal? I mean think, the key didn't fit into the briefcase from what you heard over your transmitter. He was surprised that the briefcase wasn't locked. That makes sense if we assume he wanted to open the briefcase and not the door." Harry speculated.

Shinichi looked shocked. It made so much sense. Then Ran and Kogoro appeared, Kogoro still looked sick. Ran fussed over the cut on Conan's cheek, but didn't say much as he had been with Harry. Harry decided today wouldn't be a day for the sleeping Kogoro to appear. The guests went to the cloak room to get back their things. Harry and Conan were positioned close to the counter to watch the three suspects.

Finally they handed over their tickets. Takeshita had the 99, Ueda the 97 and Nakajima the 124. Harry and Conan now knew who had been part of the deal. Conan understood how the exchange of the key and the ticket had been done. Nakajima had bumped into Tequila and then exchanged both with him, pretending they had fallen down or just put them into Tequila's pocket. Harry also spotted that Takeshita wondered shortly about something when Nakajima's number was called.

Harry's eyes widened slightly when he thought back to the game where he had punched the airbag on the machine to measure his power. Takeshita had held Nakajima's jacket then. This could be the thing he had looked for, but right now he couldn't exclude Ueda from the suspects of the bomb in the briefcase as well. He had had a chance to exchange the tickets too when Takeshita hadn't noticed. But it would be easy to find out.

* * *

><p>Megure was about to send the visitors home with the request to them to call the police if they remembered anything about the bomber. Harry decided now was the time to interfere. He couldn't let the culprit escape.<p>

"Inspector Megure, I would like to wait before everybody goes home." He called out.

All eyes were on Harry now. Shinichi, knowing this time he wouldn't have to present the solution as sleeping Kogoro, watched.

"Harrison, what are you talking about? We have to evacuate the hotel. We are dealing with a crazy bomber terrorist." Megure asked.

"There was no crazy bomber, Inspector. To be precise, there never has been placed a bomb in this hotel. If you let the people go, the one who brought the bomb with him today will escape." Harry announced.

Many were now recognizing him and whispers about 'The Hawk' flew through the crowd. The visitors were excited to see the famous high school detective solve a case. Most thought that the 'Sleeping Kogoro' had to be excused this time as he was obviously sick.

"Do you know the culprit, Harrison?" Megure asked.

"No, but I have a strong suspicion and can easily prove who the bomber was. He will reveal himself. The culprit helped a certain somebody to the briefcase, which he wanted to kill. Look at the plate with the Mantendo emblem. It is bend outwards. If the bomb had been placed at the door of the toilet the shockwave would have bend it inwards. That only leaves one conclusion. The bomb was in the briefcase."

Shocked shouts came from the spectators now.

"This case will be solved as soon as we inspect one thing. I am speaking about the contents of Mr Nakajima's suitcase." Harry pointed at the man, who was shocked to be the centre of interest.

"Nakajima, not you?" Ishikawa asked.

"No, I don't have anything to do with the bombing attempt." Nakajima denied.

"Then would you be so kind to open your briefcase?" Megure asked.

"N-No, that is impossible." He refused.

"But what if he has new ideas for a game in it?" Takeshita asked.

"R-Right." Nakajima confirmed. "I have notes in there and don't want anybody to see them."

"And instead you want to be suspected as the bomber? Just open it." Ueda demanded.

"Let go." Nakajima demanded of Ueda, who was holding onto the briefcase.

"S-Stop it." Takeshita said.

Then the briefcase opened in the struggle.

Takeshita screamed out. And covered at the ground with his hands over his head shaking madly. All eyes were concentrated upon him now.

"Takeshita?" Ueda asked confused.

Meanwhile bundles of money fell out of the briefcase. Harry was smirking. Now Ueda noticed the money too.

"He, he, now the case is absolutely clear. Mr Takeshita, you are the bomber." Harry accused.

"Huh?" Ueda asked.

"What do you mean, Harrison? Why did he shout out like that?" Megure asked.

"Because he thought the bomb that he had placed in the briefcase would explode." Harry explained.

"The bomb in the briefcase. You mean that the bomb that exploded in the toilet and killed the giant of a man was placed by Takeshita? Then the things Conan heard: Curious, … What's that shit? It doesn't open. … Huh, it's open … were related to the briefcase?" Megure realized.

"Yes, Inspector." Harry confirmed.

"So he gave the briefcase to the big man?" Megure asked.

"No, the victim got the briefcase from Mr Nakajima who made a deal with the man. Am I right?" Harry asked taking the shocked face of Nakajima as proof.

"A deal?" Megure questioned.

"Yes, my cousin Conan overheard the man talking to somebody on the phone that the deal had gone over without problems. It was really easy. Both arranged to leave their part of the deal at the cloak room. Then, after some time they met and exchanged their cloak room tickets. It happened when Conan and Nakajima bumped into the man on the way to the restroom. And it's easy to prove. My ticket is the 101. Mr Mori had the 96 and Ran the 100. Between us were Mr Takeshita, Mr Ueda and Mr Nakajima. Therefore they got the 97, 98 and 99.

"Coincidentally Conan heard the ticket number of the victim, it was the 98. That narrowed down the suspects to those three. Of course I couldn't determine the second party only by that. But as I knew that it had to be one of them I listened in when they got back their things. Interestingly Mr Nakajima had the 124. From that moment I knew he had been the second party in the deal the giant had spoken about. But I wasn't sure if he was the bomber. After all, why would he place a bomb to kill his business partner in the building where he worked? He could have easily become a suspect.

"Mr Nakajima was talking with Mr Mori while we were waiting to leave our things. Mr Takeshita, who didn't stand in the line at that moment, noticed that Mr Mori got the 96. Therefore Nakajima, who he wanted to kill, would get a number in the nineties as well. If he had a number over hundred, it would have been suspicious once they took their things back after the press conference. So he pushed between Mr Mori and us to make sure he also got a ninety. Exchanging two numbers with the same first number wouldn't be noticed.

"When the man tried to check the content of the briefcase at the toilet, the bomb went off. He was surprised that the key didn't fit; well, it couldn't as it was the wrong briefcase. The man became an unintended victim. I assume Mr Takeshita also sent the threatening letter to deflect any suspicion from himself and the briefcase. The most probable opportunity for him to exchange the tickets of him and Mr Nakajima was during the punching game. Nakajima took off his jacket and Takeshita held it."

"Do you have any proof for this, Harrison?" Megure asked.

"Of course. The briefcase Mr Takeshita has with him right now should be the one the key you found at the toilet will open. Additionally it was an original Mantendo briefcase that exploded. If you inspected all the briefcases left in this building you will find out that only Takeshita's briefcase is missing, because of his only dust and ashes are left." Harry stated.

"Really, to think I got the wrong man." Takeshita said. "And I even sent the threatening letter to make it look like a terrorist attempt."

"T-Takeshita?" Nakajima asked.

"Yes, it's true Nakajima. You are the one who should have snuffed it today." He shouted, pulling Nakajima's collar of his shirt. "You miserable pig killed Yoshimi." He shouted while two policemen restrained him to keep him away from Nakajima.

"Yoshimi?" Megure asked looking at Ueda.

"She was the manager of our boxing club at university. She was met with a refusal by Nakajima and killed herself." Ueda explained.

"Suicide?" Megure asked disbelieving. "But why would he want to take revenge?"

"Because she had been Takeshita's girlfriend since they had been at middle school." Ueda answered. "Obviously he never got over it.

Nakajima stood there pale like a sheet. He obviously was shocked how close he had come to death.

"You were lucky to cheat death today, Mr Nakajima. But now why don't we talk seriously? The man who you made the deal with, who was he?" Harry asked.

His piercing green eyes tore into Nakajima. With a swift compulsion charm he took care that he didn't have to reveal anything that he knew about the organization. He didn't want that they would come after him when they found out he had questioned Nakajima. Right now it was just a logical question regarding the case.

"I don't really know anything. I only know the place where they always met, the bar 'Cocktail' at the Big Black-Building in Beika." He admitted.

* * *

><p>Harry and Conan took off towards the Big Black-Building. They knew they had to act fast to find a clue. When they were waiting for the elevator doors to open, another explosion happened to their right. They ran out of the elevator.<p>

"The bar exploded!" They heard shouts.

Harry had to restrain Shinichi from running inside. He knew there was nothing that could be found there anymore.

The only thing Harry managed to find out later while he attended the questioning of both Nakajima and Takeshita at the police station was that Nakajima had tried to sell a list with all the world's leading programmers for a massive sum to the men in black.

In the newspapers the next day, Harry's newest success was celebrated. But he was worried about Shinichi. He had been close to finally find out more. Now all hints that he could have found were blown up with the bar. He suspected that they had blown up the bar to destroy all traces of them. They wouldn't give up and one day they would find them.

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><p><strong>Okay, that's it for this time. Hope you liked it.<strong>


	20. A Shocking Letter

**Hi, here is the new chapter. Happy reading.**

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><p><strong>A Shocking Letter<strong>

Harry and Sirius pondered about the letter Neville had sent them some time ago.

"I wouldn't have thought Luna could speak with the castle. That would have made everything a lot easier." Harry said.

"True, but if you asked she would probably tell you that you didn't ask her if she could do it." Sirius replied.

"You are right. And she would tell me that I first had to get rid of the wrackspurts that confused me at the time." Harry added.

Both laughed. Luna was just unique.

"What do you think of their plans?" Sirius asked.

"I am very impressed with what they thought up. They are right to evacuate the muggleborns as soon as possible. I just hope they all cooperate. I have no illusions that as soon as the Ministry falls to Voldemort they will be hunted down. We now have end of June. I expect them to take over before the new school year at Hogwarts starts." Harry answered.

"Probably. It would make sense for Voldemort to try and take over the education of the coming generations. He could form them to his ideals from a young age. And with the majority of people being too scared to oppose him it would work well. We can't let him have control for too long. Otherwise your job will be much more difficult. Our best option would be to contact Neville and organise a meeting with Remus and the other leaders of the resistance. With all his Death Eaters by his side, it will be impossible for you and Shinichi to get to Voldemort unhindered on your own." Sirius analysed.

Harry nodded.

"We only need to get Shinichi ready in time and you know that will probably take until the end of October. He learns fast enough, but I won't go back to Britain without Shinichi having had thorough training in duelling in his true body. And I need some time to get an antidote working."

"I am still shocked how good you have become at Potions under the tutelage of Master Wakanashi. I mean we have been here nearly a year and you can break up potions easily and concoct antidotes for them. With your previous problems I never had thought it possible that Potions of all subjects would be strength of you." Sirius stated.

"I was surprised too. But I only hated Potions because of Snape. To be honest, I was looking forward to the subject when I went to Hogwarts. It looked very interesting when I read my schoolbooks before I started. But with Snape loathing me like he did I figured I would have to learn on my own if I ever wanted to be any good. The most amusing time was when we brewed the polyjuice potion in Myrtle's bathroom. Hermione was so proud that she managed to brew it correctly that she didn't notice that I took the remains of it for myself for later use. I guess she forgot over being transformed into a humanoid cat and Ron was never that perceptive. It was really easy to impersonate Lockhart to get into the restricted section. The fool never found out." Harry told Sirius who laughed heavily.

"That's great. But I still have problems believing that three second years managed to pull it off. I thought you needed higher brewing skills than you had at twelve." He managed to get out.

"Oh, I imagine that Hermione went to Dumbledore and asked him how to do it. After all, she was his little spy. While I didn't know that in my second year, now it seems like the most probable scenario. If the man was good enough to work with Flamel in Alchemy, he had to know enough about Potions to get a high level NEWT in the subject. More than enough to give Hermione instructions for the polyjuice. It's only OWL level after all."

Sirius nodded.

"Okay, how did your meeting with Hattori at the weekend go?" Sirius asked.

"It went well. We met at Professor Agasa's house and informed him about the situation. If the organisation ever finds out about Shinichi they will kill everybody who was in contact with him who could know about the organisation. That means Hattori too." Harry answered.

Sirius nodded solemnly. He knew that Harry would be a prime target for the organization if they found out that Shinichi survived. But he also knew that he would be a target the organization would not be able to take out easily.

"Just make sure they don't get you." He said.

"I will, don't worry. I don't intend to let anybody just kill me. I managed to get out from the death sentence MOB planned for me; I will also get away from this. I want to finally live without others threatening my life. I want to be as normal as I can be. Not The-Boy-Who-Is-Marked-For-Death." Harry replied.

* * *

><p>Remus Lupin was surprised when an owl from Gringotts flew inside his new flat which he had moved in with Dora after their wedding. He never would have imagined that he would one day marry. Not with his condition. But the metamorphmagus had been stubborn in what she wanted. They had bonded together after Sirius' death and when they had found out about how Dumbledore had manipulated Harry and them all, he had decided to leave the Order of the Phoenix. She had followed. Together with some others, the Weasley twins and the old Gryffindor Quidditch team from Harry's first year at Hogwarts mainly, they had started their own group of resistance.<p>

Their group was much more democratic and open with information between the members than the Order had ever been. The only one to have all the information had been Dumbledore and only when he thought it would be important they were told news. It had been frustrating. And he wondered why it had taken him so long to see it. Perhaps because he had been subject to the brainwashing Dumbledore had practiced on the British wizarding community for decades. Everybody just thought Professor Dumbledore couldn't be wrong and did the right things. The only trouble Dumbledore had faced had been the year when the Ministry denied the return of Voldemort.

In hindsight, Dumbledore had had every reason to keep calm. He knew it was the truth. Voldemort wouldn't keep quiet forever and when he showed himself, the Ministry would have to crawl back on bended knees begging Dumbledore for forgiveness for their sins. His position would have been massively strengthened. He just had to sit it out. With as much life experience as Dumbledore had, it had been easy. It was much harder for Harry who only saw another hit in his face. He couldn't blame him for showing Dumbledore the bird and running away.

Freedom, their group, by now they had about thirty members that actively worked against Voldemort, had been really successful in stopping Death Eater attacks. Mostly because they didn't hold back on their opponents and were better equipped. Those Weasley twins were incredible. The things they came up with to use against Voldemort's minions were nothing short of genius. And Dumbledore had wanted to keep them out of the Order because they were too young. He could only shake his head at that.

Remus took the letter from the owl, gave it an owl treat and put a bowl of water in front of it, which the owl gratefully accepted. Once the owl was taken care of he took the letter with him into the living room where Dora was trying to decide how she wanted to place the couches and armchairs. They had changed the settings of the furniture twice already and it still didn't meet her wishes. Thankfully it was easy for wizards to do it. A levitation charm and things could easily change positions. If he had had to do it the muggle way he could imagine he would have been a bit put out with his wife.

"Hey, Dora. I got a letter from Gringotts." He said.

"What do they want?" She asked.

"Don't know yet. I haven't opened it yet." Remus answered and opened the letter.

He started reading and his eyes grew bigger and bigger. Dora wondered what would make her husband react like that and stepped next to him to read over his shoulder. Her reaction resembled Remus'.

_Hi Moony and hi Tonks if my informants didn't lie to me._

_How are you? If you wonder this is Harry writing. I am doing well in the place where I have taken up residence to escape the death sentence a certain manipulative old bastard (MOB from here on) placed over my head since I was a baby. Yes, you read right the MOB wanted me dead. The way that was to come about, was that Voldy would kill me and with the opened connection between Moldy and me (curtsey of Snape – Occlumency lessons indeed, ha!) I would pull Moldy with me to death. In case that didn't work the whole way, after all we know that Voldy is somewhat resistant to death; the MOB would come and do the last deed and be celebrated as the hero once again._

_Well, I wanted to tell you that I haven't totally given up on England, though the thought is tempting to just let them clean up their own mess for once, and that I am training to someday in the near future be ready to take out Voldy. From what you know there was a prophecy that said I was the one who could take out Voldy for good. If MOB ever told you the content of it, forget it; that was made up shit. I know the real one and I have found the one to help me in my quest. Another victim of MOB by the way._

Remus and Tonks looked at each other confused. There were two that had to work together to bring Voldemort down? Why would Dumbledore sabotage the other one then?

_I guess you are wondering why in heaven's name Dumbledore would harm the other one of the prophecy. That is easy to understand once you know the true prophecy. I know it now and have confirmations from two sources. It goes like this:_

_**The saviours of the wizarding world will come … born with the power to vanquish the dark Lords … born on two sides of the world … one born to those who thrice defied the dark Lord veiled by darkness… born as the seventh month dies … one born to the brightest mind and the magical actress … born in the middle of spring … and both will be betrayed by the dark Lord hidden in light … but together they will unite what was forcefully divided … guided by the totem of death … they will bring down the power of the dark Lords… born on two sides of the world.**_

_Nice huh? Well, our guess is that the dark Lord hidden in the light was our not so beloved MOB. The other one is obviously Moldyshorts._

Remus and Tonks blinked. This prophecy was massively different from the pieces Dumbledore had told them about. Not the exact wording but he had told them that Harry had to kill Voldemort. And now it turned out that he was only trying to protect himself from being brought down by Harry and the other saviour. But what could be meant with the totem of death?

_I also want to give you some good news on the family side. I didn't just run away alone. The whole thing was being planned since MOB imprisoned Sirius at Grimmauld Place. Sirius knew that he would only live as long as MOB regarded him as useful. He could after all keep me positive towards the Order and Dumbledore. So we decided that we would run for it together once I had my OWLs. I had found out in my first year at Hogwarts what would be required of me to get emancipated. If you wonder why an eleven year old would look that kind of information up – well, you have met the Dursleys._

_They are vile, bullying, child abusing, two-faced scum of humanity. Sorry, that needed to get out. I knew since primary school, that I wanted out of there as soon as possible. When I didn't know about the wizarding world, I researched ways to get emancipated in the muggle world. That was when I was eight. I found out that the earliest I could do it was when I had the equivalent of OWLs in the muggle world, meaning with fifteen. The process was similar to the one in the wizarding world. You had to prove to the authorities that you could take care of yourself, which would be achieved with a scholarship or proof of financial backing._

_I had planned to stop masking my intelligence once I went to secondary school to gain such a scholarship. Preferably to a school that offered summer classes. Everything to get away from the Dursleys permanently. If I had to work all year it wouldn't matter to me. I wanted to get to the top to show the Dursleys up anyway and I knew that nobody would help me without having a reason for it early in my life._

_When my Hogwarts letter came, it was part of the solution I needed. While I couldn't get away from the Dursleys all year, I would be ten out of twelve months, which was a good working base. And to completely vanish into a world the Dursleys couldn't reach had immense charm to me. Sadly I was soon shown that the wizarding world wasn't all that great. The bigotry that is allowed to take place is something I could have done without. It took me some time; after all I had to get used to magic first, to realize that especially Great Britain needed a thorough kick in the arse to get to the twentieth century. The place I am staying right now is much more open-minded. Like I said, I really like it here._

_So I planned. I found out said requisites to get emancipated. It was the same time frame that I had before but I needed to start at the bottom of learning. I decided to not show my plans. With me being The-Boy-Who-Lived I assumed some people would try to stop it to keep control over me. It is always the same. Those powerful and influential are tried to be controlled by others in either world. The flimsiness of the wizarding world I first found out about after Hermione and I helped to smuggle Hagrid's dragon out. McGonagall didn't even listen to us and just deducted fifty points each for being out of bed after curfew and gave us detention. Really? _

Remus and Tonks looked at each other. Hagrid had had a real live dragon at Hogwarts? Was he crazy? Well the answer for that would probably be yes. When dangerous creatures were concerned Hagrid was not the sanest person. They read on.

_Did the woman ever hear of moderation and equality? Malfoy lost twenty points and got detention. And of course all of Gryffindor turned against us just because we lost those points. Hello? As if the twins didn't lose more points all the time. Okay, one hundred and fifty points (she also caught Neville who wanted to warn us, great guy that) in one go is a bit much, but Hermione earned those points within one week on a regular base, I got them from Quidditch and would have easily been able to trick the teachers into giving me some during lessons. Just a bit less holding back and it would have been done. Damn hypocrites._

"That really was a bit much. I mean, the Marauders were out of bed constantly at night and we never got deducted that many points for it. And we were caught sometimes. If she had deducted fifty in total from the three that would have been okay." Remus commented.

"True, it seems more than a bit over the top. But perhaps that was also on MOB's orders. After all, dear old Minerva has always believed everything the old coot sprouted." Tonks pondered.

Remus nodded. His wife was right.

_Same scenario just over the whole school in second year. Of course I have to be the heir of Slytherin just because I stop a snake that Malfoy conjured on Snape's instruction from attacking someone. Again nobody believes me, I have to be dark, after all I can talk to snakes. Ridiculous. _

_Not to mix up with riddikulus. _

_Stop messing with my letter Sirius! Sorry, my dear godfather couldn't help himself inserting that comment and I am using a dicta quill._

"Sirius is alive?" Remus asked.

Both he and Tonks went through a mass of emotions. They had mourned Sirius death at the Ministry and now they found out he was alive and with Harry?

"Continue reading they will probably tell more." Tonks said.

_Okay, I had indicated it already, but now officially, Sirius is alive and living with me and helping me train._

_Hi, Moony, hi, Nym. Sorry for the deception with me falling through the veil, but faking my death was the only way to get away from MOB and helping Harry. _

The writing had changed to the normal writing Remus knew was Sirius' which the dicta quill imitated.

_We are writing this letter now because MOB died. Without him only some of his cronies (the Weasleys except the twins, don't know about Charlie, Hermione, and McGonagall) are left and I can take care of them when I come back. That means no more insane death plans for me. I know how to make Voldy mortal again. I don't know if you already knew, if you are in contact with Neville and Luna you probably do, but he made horcruxes. Seven of them to be precise, one of them not intentional on his part._

_I will take over from now because Harry gets emotional on this topic. _

Sirius writing appeared.

_The horcruxes were the diary that Harry destroyed in his second year to save Ginny Weasley, the ring Dumbledore destroyed, a locket of Slytherin, I found it at Grimmauld Place, obviously Regulus stole it from Voldemort when he found out about it, Voldemort's snake, a cup of Helga Hufflepuff, the goblins destroyed the horcrux, they hate those foul things being hidden in their vaults, the diadem of Ravenclaw, I got it from the Room of Requirement some time ago and destroyed it together with the locket and Harry's scar._

"WHAT?" Both Remus and Tonks shouted.

"Harry is a horcrux? But how?" Tonks asked. "And how can he get rid of the soul piece without dying?"

"Here, Sirius wrote that part next." Remus said after he had looked at the letter again.

_Don't worry; we had help from the local Department of Mysteries with the separation of Harry and the soul piece. Harry got rid of the part of Voldemort that was the reason for their connection and is well. There is an old ritual from then middle ages where it had been found out how to do it with a living container without killing said container. Seems as if MOB didn't even try to find a solution that didn't include killing Harry. At the moment only the snake is left. If we get the snake killed he will be mortal again and anybody should be able to kill him. But if the prophecy means that it has to be Harry and Shinichi, they are getting ready to do it. There are some complications, like MOB interfering and trying to kill Shinichi indirectly by binding his core completely since he was six months old, he now is catching up on his training, but we expect to be ready to come to England at the end of October. If all goes well and we get the snake and Voldemort quickly we will return here for Harry to finish his education and take his NEWTs._

_If you wonder why we wouldn't stay, well, let's say that Harry wants to be left alone by those hypocritical arses that lead the Ministry. If the witches and wizards in Britain manage to clean up their mess, we might come back, but living here is nice. No one knows us, except for some Unspeakables, we made friends and I even have a new girlfriend. I didn't manage to get Harry one yet, but I don't think it will take long. He is really popular with the girls._

_Sirius, don't talk about things that are not your business!_

The writing changed back to Harry_._

_Okay, now that you know a bit what is going on on our side, we would like to keep in contact with you. If you want to send us a letter, give it to the goblins, they will forward it if there are no nasty surprises on the letters. I think the number of letters they refused to take from MOB was 11 until he realized that it wouldn't work that way. Give the members of Freedom our best wishes, if you meet some Order members, tell them to f*** themselves and kick the Death Munchers arses._

_Best regards_

_Harry and Sirius_

"Damn it, they really managed to pull one over everybody. I wouldn't have thought they would be there." Remus said.

"You know where they are? How?" Tonks asked, re-reading the letter if she had overlooked them telling their location.

"I only know the country, probably. It was in Sirius explanations. He said the name of Harry's friend who had to train was Shinichi. That is a traditionally Japanese name. No wonder none of the Order lookouts could find them. They concentrated on English speaking countries or magical schools where they speak English. From what I understand, they have gone to Japan. I wouldn't put it past the goblins to have a method to learn other languages permanently. Otherwise, how would their curse-breakers get by? Dumbledore massively underestimated Harry again. To think he planned his emancipation since first year." Remus said.

"Wouldn't Bill have told him of the possibility?" Tonks questioned.

"Not if he had to swear an oath, which would be normal with the crafty goblins. They keep their secrets close. I guess Harry and Sirius paid a good amount of galleons to get it done. But with them having the Potter and Black fortunes at their disposal that would have been very easy." Remus reminded her.

"So Harry and Sirius are living somewhere in Japan. Nice choice of location. It will be nearly impossible to find them there. While the country isn't that big, they have a high population, especially in the big cities like Tokyo, Osaka and Sapporo." Tonks said.

"Yes, that was probably one reason they chose Japan as their hideout. We should keep the knowledge for us. They will come back at the end of October, until then it will be best if Voldemort and his Death Eaters don't have a clue where they could be."

"I agree. We can tell Freedom that we got a letter and that they are well and will support us in the fight once they are ready. But I am really happy to know that my cousin is still alive." She said.

"Me too. I was devastated when I saw him falling through the veil. To think it was all a ruse to get away from Dumbledore. I can understand them, but it still hurts that they didn't tell me. It was like 1981 all over again." Remus told her.

"Yes, but I think they just didn't want to risk their lives if MOB, hey that is cool to call the bastard that, found out Sirius was still alive and could help Harry. And you needed some time to get away from MOB."

"I know. It took the whole search for Harry and the twins finding out the plans that were made to get his money to wake me up. I wish I had seen it earlier. That he imprisoned Sirius to keep an eye on him, that he sent Harry back to those … those monsters to keep him meek. He only helped me to be able to manipulate me. When I didn't have any use for him he just dropped me. Like after Lily and James died. I should have realized it earlier but I just thought he was too busy with rebuilding after Voldemort's fall to look out for single persons." Remus said.

"You are right, he was a MOB. But he is dead now and we need to first win against the Death Eaters to start really cleaning up our country. It wasn't done in 1981 and the following years and we now see the results. This time we need to get them all." She said and then distracted him with a kiss.

He only too happily agreed with being distracted.

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><p><strong>That's it for this time. Moving on back in Britain. Till next time.<strong>


	21. Master Thief 1412

**Okay, after a longer break here is the next chapter. Hope you like it.**

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><p><strong>Master Thief 1412<strong>

It was early afternoon at the Beika museum. Yesterday Sonoko Suzuki had asked Ran to ask her father to help with the investigation for the heist the master thief that had the code number 1412 in some international organization had announced through a warning letter. Conan was tired; he had tried hard to solve the coded message, but hadn't come up with a solution yet. All around the museum the police had taken position to prevent the theft of the 'Black Star' a black pearl that had been in the possession of the Suzuki family for fifty years.

Really, this was a code that was difficult to solve.

April's Fool.

When the moon divides the two, I will appear riding on the waves of the black star. Kaito …

Sadly the last part of the message had been torn away when Sonoko's father had first read the message and it hadn't been salvageable. While Kogoro assured Shiro Suzuki, Sonoko's father that he would manage to catch that thief easily with his abilities, Conan was looking around. Then they were taken to the show case where the pearl was presented.

"So this is the biggest black pearl in the world, the 'Black Star'." Kogoro stated impressed.

"Yes, since my honoured grandfather acquired this pearl, our family was truly blessed by Fortuna. We truly regard it as our family's good luck charm." Shiro explained.

"I see you truly have ordered massive security. So many policemen. Isn't the theft only announced for tonight?" Kogoro asked.

"Well, except for the date, which was a bit off as we have June, there was nothing much that could be gained from the letter, for that reason the guards will keep watch the whole night." Shiro admitted.

Just then they heard the chief inspector of the policemen order his men to have an eye on the river.

"This damned No. 1412 will obviously try to get inside from the river Teimuzu. So increase the guards at the banks finally!" He ordered.

Mori started laughing.

"Aren't you that Mori that was with the first department in the past?" He asked.

"You are wrong, Chief Inspector Chaki." Kogoro said.

"What?" Inspector Chaki asked irritated.

"If you speak of waves, you speak of the sea. If you talk of the sea, you talk of the tides. And a star can have two meanings … in other words, the pop star that is having a concert at Beika Dome tomorrow. It's Yoko Okino with her mega hit 'With the Tides'."

Conan was wondering how Kogoro had come up with that interpretation.

"And everybody knows that she always ends her show with her classic hit 'Moon Lady'. That means that our master thief No. 1412 will appear tomorrow night at nine o'clock when the show of Yoko Okino is coming to an end at Beika Dome." Kogoro concluded his deductions.

"That could be true…" Inspector Chaki pondered the thought.

"Mr Mori, you truly are a master detective." Shiro praised Kogoro's deductions.

"You heard it, units C, D, and E to Beika Dome at once!" Inspector Chaki ordered his men.

* * *

><p>While Shinichi was thinking hard what the code could mean as he hadn't solved it yet, he didn't notice somebody else inspecting the pearl close up and grinning. Nor the one hiding in the shadows. Then Shinichi obviously had a thought and tried to determine the directions with his watch. His observer in the shadows thought that it looked promising. Especially as Shinichi smirked. Both the visitor and the one in the shadows left the room. The one who had hidden in the shadows took out a handy.<p>

"Yes, it's me. Chief Inspector Chaki just ordered his men to take post at Beika Dome because Mori deducted that Kid will appear there and then come over her to steal the 'Black Star'. Obviously Yoko Okino has a song that's called 'With the Tides', which Mori interpreted as the waves from the announcement letter and next to that one called 'Moon Lady' which ends her performance each time and this is supposedly the announced time." He reported.

"Yes, I know, but we know the real meaning. By the way, we could have another one who solved the code, but I am not sure. … No, definitely not opposition. … Okay I will come to the meeting point in ten minutes." He cut the line and left the museum.

It would definitely be an interesting night.

* * *

><p>Conan was on the roof of the Haido City Hotel. He was setting up a can with a small rocket. Obviously he had a plan. It was 0:28 on his watch and soon the time for the announced heist would come. Everything was prepared. All entrances to the building were watched and there was no way Kid would be able to get through the net this time. Then he noticed a white object flying over to the hotel. He had been right to take position on the roof. Well, Nakamori would be able to come here fast enough if he was needed.<p>

The flyer landed and was noticed by Conan.

Conan and his unknown company both watched Kaito Kid intently. They tried to get clues on his identity, or at least his age.

"Hello, little one." Kid said while walking towards Conan.

"Hello, Kid." The hidden one said and came out from his hiding place.

"Harry?" Conan asked confused.

"Yep. I was curious to meet the famous master thief Kaito Kid, so I decided to wait until he would appear tonight." Harry said.

"If I am right, you are Harrison Black, the one they call 'The Hawk'. Are you the replacement for Hakuba?" Kid asked.

"Perhaps. I have to applaud you for your message though. Nice one." Harry said walking up to Conan and Kid.

"Yes, one of my better ones." Kid said grinning confidently. "How did you figure it out? Mori's deductions at the museum were amusing but so far off … " He asked.

"When the moon divides the two, means the sun and a satellite. Which tells us the time once we know the satellite you talk about. The satellite in question is the one the BS channel uses for their program. That's also the reason you said riding on the waves of the black star, the initials being the name of the channel. The only thing I had to do was finding out from where the waves of the satellite program came in relation to the Beika museum and I knew where you would be between half past twelve and half past four tonight. By the way, why did you make a comment to the 1st April at the beginning of July? And you really should improve your codes if my six year old cousin can figure them out." Harry added a jibe at the end.

"Your cousin you say, not a normal child I would guess." Kid said looking at Conan who now fired his rocket into the sky.

"Hey, the helicopter seems to have seen my fireworks." Conan happily told them, Harry silently laughing about Shinichi's acting skills.

"You really are not a normal child, aren't you?" Kid asked Conan.

"I am Conan Edogawa, I am a detective." Conan said.

The helicopter came flying towards them.

"Say, Kaito Kid, shouldn't you run away? The helicopter is coming here." He asked pointing at the helicopter of the police.

Harry spotted that Shinichi was readying his tranquilliser gun. He understood the plan and decided to go with it. Soon Nakamori would arrive. He had already sent the signal that Kid had appeared at his position and with Shinichi alarming the police the ones at Beika Dome and the museum would also soon arrive. Kid was trapped. Then Kid took out a walkie talkie and cleared his throat.

"Chaki here. We spotted Kaito Kid on the roof of the Haido City Hotel. All available units in the districts Beika and Haido to the hotel at once." Kid said with Chief Inspector Chaki's voice, stunning Harry and Shinichi. "All helicopters in the air over Beika; fly to the hotel at once and arrest Kid."

Then Kid changed his voice.

"This is Nakamori. To all officers patrolling at the Haido City Hotel. Kid is on the roof, arrest him." Kid ordered with Inspector Nakamori's voice.

"The last one was unnecessary, Kid; Inspector Nakamori was already on the way up." Harry commented, not showing his surprise at Kid's ability to imitate voices without a tool like Shinichi's bow-tie.

"So you are assisting the good Nakamori in this case, Mr Master Detective. Just like Hakuba. How did you get the stubborn old man to agree?" Kid wanted to know.

Harry just smiled. He wouldn't be distracted. Just that moment Inspector Nakamori arrived at the roof and pointed his gun at Kaito Kid. Then the helicopters appeared behind Kid and his cape was blown up.

"Inspector Nakamori, you were even faster than the helicopters." Kid commented staying calm.

"As if you hadn't known that I had deciphered your message and took lookout positions. My men were all over the building guarding all entrances. While I didn't really think you would fly here from Tokyo tower, I agreed with Black's plan to have him keep an eye on the roof to be prepared if you came here. He sent me a message with his handy as soon as you appeared." Nakamori informed Kid.

"You can forget the pearl. You won't escape from here." Nakamori said, his men arriving just then from the staircase.

"I only came here today to see my opposition. I don't intend to steal the pearl. Perhaps now you know the answer to your previous question, Harrison Black." Kid said, taking a device into his hand.

"What?" Nakamori asked angrily.

"What? That was stated clearly at the beginning of my message. April's Fool!" Kid said and activated his hang-glider.

"Don't let him escape!" Nakamori shouted and ran towards Kid.

Kid dropped a flash grenade, blinding the policemen, Harry and Shinichi.

"Did you know, my dear detectives, a master thief is a creative artist of crime, stealing his prey in astonishing ways … a detective is nothing more than a critic who is amazed by the deed of the thief." Kid said addressing Harry and Shinichi.

Then a cloud of smoke exploded and Kid was gone when the assembled people on the roof regained their sight. They all looked around where Kid could have fled to, but there was no trace. Harry even discretely made sure that Kid hadn't just disapparated, but there was no trace of magic. There was no trace of his white hang-glider in the air and he was nowhere on the roof.

Nakamori ordered the helicopters to keep looking for him. Then a card with a rose that was glued to it with sellotape fell from the air and was spotted by Harry and Nakamori.

Harry lifted the card from the ground with his gloved hand.

He read the message out to the others.

"I will steal the real Black Star when it is on board of the ship 'Queen Sallybeth', which will put to sea from the Yokohama port on the 19th July. Kaito Kid." Harry read out.

Nakamori glared at the message which Harry handed over to him.

* * *

><p>Harry accompanied Conan home and explained how he had got onto Nakamori's team to chase Kid.<p>

"So Inspector Megure overheard Nakamori talking about the heist and thought it would be a good idea to ask you to assist Nakamori with the case." Shinichi said.

"Yes. He also wanted to have you there, but you know why he wouldn't reach you. Kid has deceived the police for a long time. I did some research."

"Yeah, me too. I had Professor Agasa look him up in Dad's files at home. Obviously Kid first appeared a decade or so ago, but then he disappeared suddenly eight years ago. Some said he died, perhaps that's true, perhaps not. The one on the roof today was younger than twenty from what I could see of his face. There is no chance that he could be the same one from eight years ago if I am right. Rather this one is a successor." Shinichi said.

"I had the same impression. Of course we don't know if that is his true face, he is a master of disguise. I read the files Nakamori has on him. No. 1412 is the official number Kid got in the archives of Interpol. The numbers then were read as letters by your father and from there on he had the name Kaito Kid. He steals mostly art, jewels and some objects that have a high value one way or the other. Recently he concentrated on jewels.

"Contrary to the thefts of the past this time Kid seems to regard this all like a game. He breaks in, deceives the police and whatever detective is trying to stop him and escapes undetected. After everything is over the police or the owner of the stolen thing gets them back through different means. Something is fishy there. What kind of thief goes to that lengths and then just gives his spoils back?" Harry asked.

"That is definitely strange. By the way, how did Nakamori accept your help and who is Hakuba?" Shinichi asked.

"Well, convincing Nakamori was not easy, but my record of arresting difficult criminals spoke for me and he had regular support from another high school detective in the past. That is said Hakuba. His full name is Saguru Hakuba and his father is chief Inspector Hakuba here at the Tokyo police station. That way he got onto the Kaito Kid cases. He is studying at a private school in England and therefore mostly absent from Japan now. He spent a year at a high school in Tokyo in the same class as Nakamori's daughter Aoko."

"I see. So how are we going to get Kid when he tries the second time? I guess you have more information on his usual tricks than me." Shinichi asked.

"Indeed. As I said, Kid is a master of disguise. We both were witnesses of his ability to perfectly imitate the voices of others without technological help. He often used dummies to pose for him while he snuck away on other routes. He used balloons with puppets of him, just puppets, he disguised himself as a policeman to sneak into secured places; he can even imitate women perfectly as long as they are grown up. The only person he can't turn into would be a child as the height difference would be noticed. His favourite method to escape is using his cape as a hang-glider. That's the reason the police always has helicopters in the air to catch him if he flees through the air. From what Nakamori told me he is good at all sports except ice skating." Harry listed.

"A difficult opponent then. But that only makes it more interesting." Shinichi said grinning.

"Indeed. We now have nineteen days to prepare. We also have the advantage that through Ran we can easily get the Suzukis to let me have a thorough look through the ship before the party starts. Getting an invitation will also be easy. We will make sure that Kid doesn't have anything prepared on board." Harry said.

* * *

><p>Back in England the leaders of Freedom and Liberty met. Remus was presiding the meeting after conversing with Neville how they wanted to do the meeting.<p>

"Thank you all for coming tonight. We all know that we are standing before a new full out war. Until now Voldemort only did attacks on single persons that opposed him and would make his takeover attempts more difficult, like Amelia Bones. We think the next one he will attack, as soon as he is sure the plan will work, is Rufus Scrimgeour, the Minister of Magic. The older ones with us probably remember the last war. This time we will not just stand aside and let the Death Eaters kill us while waiting for them. We will not be undermined by spies. I know that all members of Freedom have signed oaths to never actively support Voldemort and to never reveal information to him on their own accords.

"That simple action will prevent a repeat of a traitor like Pettigrew or Snape being informed about our plans. I know Liberty has done something similar with its members?" Remus looked at Neville.

"Yes. While Hermione Granger might have been a spy for Dumbledore and not doing the best for the side against Voldemort, she had a good idea with the precautions against others telling about the DA. We put our best researchers on the case and came up with something similar but much harsher. I guess it could be compared with what you described, Remus." Neville confirmed.

"Good to know. If you wouldn't mind, would you like to start about the actions liberty took over the last year at Hogwarts? After that I will inform you about the things Freedom did to fight Voldemort." Remus said.

The others, Fred, George, Tonks, Kingsley and Mad-Eye for Freedom and Luna, Susan, Hannah, Dean and Earnie for Liberty nodded their agreement.

"We practically continued at Hogwarts where Harry stopped in our fifth year. We knew that we needed to continue learning how to defend ourselves. As Harry made me aware of the manipulations in his life through Dumbledore and warned me that I could be the next one he could try to manipulate, I informed all the former DA members of the new plan and we met in the Room of Requirement in the first week back. Of course we excluded Ron, Ginny and Hermione. We realized that there was no way a single person could do all the work with looking up spells and teaching them to the others and that we also needed to prepare a bigger group than just the former DA.

"So we built teams for different subjects. First they would look up spells in the library, then they would practice them for themselves and in the end teach them to the others. We also had a group that prepared leaflets for the younger years that were handed out to them after the first month where we listed the best measures to defend themselves and what to look for when they were out in public. We also offered to teach them the most basic defence spells. While Snape was a better defence teacher than most others, he still was a prejudiced git and you know how younger students react to his person.

"Liberty also did research on the known supporters of Voldemort at Hogwarts and made profiles of each of them. We collected everything we could get our hand on. Family, abilities, monetary situation, friends and allies and so on." Neville informed them.

"That's a very good base. I would like to see the fighting capabilities of Liberty sometime in the near future. Now it's my turn to tell what we did though. Freedom mostly consists of members that were massively disgusted with the ways things were done in the Order of the Phoenix. We, after finding out the true colours of Dumbledore, decided we wanted to change the way we fought in this war. As the Ministry is next to useless in their fight against Voldemort, we knew we had to make sure we wouldn't be picked apart like we were in the last war. We trained all members of Freedom to be proficient if they are faced with a Death Eater attack.

"We decided that we wouldn't pull our punches any longer. The only result that behaviour brings us is death of our members. While we are aware that there probably will be deaths if the war gets in the really intense phase, we are not inclined to make it easier for the Death Eaters by refraining from taking them out permanently. We all know that once Voldemort is ready for his take over, Azkaban will be cleared of his supporters again, if he didn't already do it. With the Ministry hushing up things again it's hard to tell.

"We are recruiting members, but that isn't that easy as many people are too frightened to stand up for themselves. The long-time lack of proper Defence Against the Dark Arts teachers only adds to the problem. Voldemort and his Death Eaters won't be met with much resistance once they act. Therefore it is imperative that we cut off his supply of followers and with them money for his plans. The goblins won't help other than not helping Voldemort either. It is questionable for how long they can hold that stand.

"We are actively trying to take out Death Eaters in secret. We have a good stock of veritaserum and question them once we catch them. The information we get is put into files that our information gathering team is putting together in short summaries for all our members to keep them informed about the current plans and the Death Eaters. The ones we have interrogated we normally poison and leave somewhere to be found easily in the mid of the night, openly exposing their dark marks. That way even the Ministry can't interpret it to their liking if we kill influential ones. Though we rarely get those. We got Rastaban Lestrange, Walden McNair and Evan Avery from the inner circle. The others were lower ranked minions." Remus said.

The members of Liberty nodded.

"Next thing is, Dora and I got a letter from Harry and a surprising old friend." Remus continued.

"What did he write?" Asked Fred. Remus hadn't shared the letter with Freedom yet.

"And what friend are you talking about?" George added.

"Well, he told us a bit more about what he has been doing over the past year. He is training to be ready to face Voldemort. And he informed me about the true prophecy. The one we were informed about in parts by Dumbledore was made up shit." He said.

"So we were risking our lives all that year for nothing?" Kingsley asked irritated.

"No, the Department of Mysteries always has the true prophecy. They are magically recorded through an ancient device. I guess Dumbledore heard the real one and made up a fake after that, getting the inspiration to either set up a trap for Voldemort." Moody said.

"But why did Dumbledore risk Harry finding out the true prophecy and let him go to the DoM after he got that vision?" Neville asked.

He had thought about that question a lot after finding out that there was another prophecy than the one Harry had been told by Dumbledore.

"He probably couldn't stop him without looking suspicious. And he had three of his followers in the group. They could just have destroyed it before he heard it." Tonks reminded them.

"Okay, so probably we should share both prophecies." Neville said.

"Do you know the fake one? We only got the real one from Harry." Tonks asked.

"Yes, I do. It was in Harry's first letter after he ran away." Neville answered.

"Okay. Then I will start with the real one.

The saviours of the wizarding world will come … born with the power to vanquish the dark Lords … born on two sides of the world … one born to those who thrice defied the dark Lord veiled by darkness… born as the seventh month dies … one born to the brightest mind and the magical actress … born in the middle of spring … and both will be betrayed by the dark Lord hidden in light … but together they will unite what was forcefully divided … guided by the totem of death … they will bring down the power of the dark Lords… born on two sides of the world."Remus said.

"The one with the power to vanquish the dark lord approaches … born to those who have thrice defied him … born as the seventh month dies … and the dark lord will mark him as his equal … but he will have powers the dark lord knows not … and one must die by the hand of the other … for neither can live while the other survives … the one with the power to vanquish the dark lord will be born as the seventh month dies." Neville recited from memory.

"I can't believe that we followed that MOB for so long." Tonks said.

"MOB?" Fred asked.

"Harry's short form for manipulative old bastard." Tonks said.

"I like it. Way easier to say then Dumbledore the whole time." George said.

"So from the true prophecy we know that there isn't one saviour but there are two. Do we have any clue who the second one could be?" Kingsley asked.

"Yes. His name is Shinichi and he was another victim of MOB. From what Harry wrote MOB bound his core when he was about six months old completely and just waited until he would die. The binding was detected though and undone and he is now training to get to his full strength. Now to the other parts of the letter. I will start with the old friend I mentioned. Well, Harry didn't run alone, he was accompanied by Sirius. He is still alive." Remus said smiling.

"WHAT?" A collective shout came from the others.

"He is alive? Damn that mongrel really pulled one over us. It looked terribly realistic." Moody said.

"I know. I fully intend to hex him to hell when I see him again." Remus agreed growling lowly.

"So Harry knew that Sirius was alive all the time?" George asked curiously.

"Yes. They had planned their escape for the time when Harry had his OWL results. But Harry overheard the plans to kill him when Ron and Hermione talked with Dumbledore in the hospital wing. So they decided to leave the country as soon as Hogwarts let out. Harry had planned to get emancipated from the time he was eight. He had already planned how he would achieve that in the muggle world and when his Hogwarts letter came, he at least had a nine month reprieve from the Dursleys. He researched in the library in first year how he could get his emancipation in the wizarding world. He hid his intelligence to not be hindered or used by others. He only had the OWLs as his goal." Remus said.

"Damn, he would truly have been a worthy marauder. We never even suspected anything about him being off." Fred said awed.

"How the hell did he manage that without help?" George added.

"Who said he didn't have help?" Neville asked grinning.

"Wait, you?" The twins asked looking at Neville astonished.

"Yes, since first year. I one day asked Harry if he could help me with a bit of homework in Charms when all the other boys in our dorm were already down at breakfast. He agreed and I noticed he was not like he was in classes. I asked him about it and after making me swear I wouldn't tell anybody without his permission he told me about being used to dumbing down his work because of his cousin. It turned into a long talk about both our families. I offered him to help him with his deception as I really wanted to have a good friend. He agreed. I got Ron off his back when he wanted to sneak into the library a few times; I kept Hermione busy with questions about work to let him learn his additional material and warned him of things I overheard the Slytherins say sometimes." Neville reported.

"I know one of the spells he used regularly was a disguising charm that made the things he read look like his normal schoolwork. But he also had other methods to learn." He added.

"How did Harry manage to learn Runes, Arithmancy and Muggle Studies? And how did he manage to do all his learning without anybody figuring it out before it was too late?" Kingsley asked interested.

"He did the three classes by copying Hermione's time-turner with a spell he found in his family grimoire the summer before third year. He quickly figured out that she had to have a method to be in two places at the same time and looked up the possibilities in the library. So after one week or so, he intercepted her by throwing a harmless sleeping gas vial on the floor at her feet and made her fall asleep. He copied the time turner and then woke her up again. She never suspected anything and neither did anybody else. We made sure the corridor was empty and I kept watch to warn him if somebody came. The learning was easy after MOB sent him his father's invisibility cloak for the first Christmas. He just snuck into the library two times a week at night and read as much as he wanted. Normally he used Tuesday and Friday night.

"On Tuesdays Madam Pince is at a club in London and on Fridays he had the advantage of sleeping in on Saturdays. When he got that copying charm he also filled his secret compartment in his trunk with copies of the books in the normal part of the library. He knew he needed all the information he could get as nobody seemed to think he would need more training to be ready once Voldemort returned. I would have thought after first year he would have got more training as then there was proof that Voldemort hadn't been killed in '81, but instead we got the fool Lockhart."

"I wonder how you two ended in Gryffindor. While the sheer nerve to do it is very Gryffindor, the sneakiness is more Slytherin and you definitely also have some Hufflepuff traits." Parvati commented.

"Well, Harry could have been in any house, especially Slytherin, but he asked the hat to not be put there, knowing about the stigma. I was considered for Hufflepuff, but in the end the hat decided on Gryffindor." Neville explained.

"So I guess Harry learned to brew Pepper-Up potion really quickly." Moody said putting the pieces of the puzzle together.

"Yes, it also helped in second year that we had History of Magic the first two hours on Wednesday. Nobody thinks it is strange if we sleep in that class." Neville confirmed. "Harry told me that he didn't trust many people. I only found out about a lot of what I just told you over the entirety of first year. After I tried to warn him about Malfoy trying to get him in trouble because of the dragon he told me a lot more than in the beginning. While most people believed that Ron and Hermione were Harry's best friends, in reality it was me.

"And even I didn't know everything about him. I always knew Harry kept many secrets but I didn't question him about it. He is a really private person. We also didn't advertise the fact that we were that close friends. I first had to get over my insecurities and Harry had to be sure he could really trust me. Harry thought of Ron and Hermione as friends, but he also knew about their jealousy and insecurities. Hermione always needed to be the best and Ron was lazy and jealous about Harry's fame and money. He also wasn't that smart. So Harry decided to keep them happy by being average at school.

"After all, it wasn't important until the OWLs. He just needed to pass. And it would keep MOB in the dark. Harry knew something was off with MOB after his first year. He wrote in his first letter about the obstacles for the stone. They were stuff first years, especially them, could get through easily. The Cerberus not so much, but Hagrid practically told them how to do it. Then Devil's Snare - there are way more dangerous plants Professor Sprout could have chosen. Next was a chase for a flying key - Harry is a terrific seeker. A giant chess board - about the only thing Ron is good at. A Mountain troll - while that one was already dead, they had faced one before. Then a potions riddle based on logic - made for Hermione. The last obstacle was the Mirror of Erised which Harry had seen before and got explained by MOB.

"While I didn't know everything about Harry, he kept his secrets very close, I knew more than everybody else." Neville explained.

"How come you didn't do better either?" Earnie asked.

"Two reasons. First, Harry has a photographic memory, I don't. I need more time to understand things; my family undermining my confidence over years didn't help either. Second, my wand wasn't a good match. My Gran had me use my Dad's old wand, to honour him like she said. It hindered me more than anything I know now. After the wand broke in the DoM fight, I got a new one and with this wand I am much more comfortable about my magic. Ollivander explained to me that the wand chooses the wizard. I told Gran off massively after I found out that bit of information." Neville said.

"That makes sense. Herbology is a class you don't need active magic for; therefore your wand couldn't hinder you. Which would explain why you always were good at it. This year you were incredible with learning new spells." Dean said.

Neville nodded smiling.

"So, back to our actions in the near future. Harry told us that he would probably come back at the end of October. They need until then to get Shinichi prepared. Sirius also informed us about the secret of Voldemort's immortality. The bastard made horcruxes, containers for pieces of his soul. As long as he has at least one of them left, he can't die. The biggest problem was he made seven, one of them accidental." Tonks said.

"What? He made more than one of those abominations?" Moody thundered.

"You seem to know more about them." Remus said.

"Indeed. I made it my job to know as much about the dark arts to conquer them as I could. Those abominations are the darkest of magic. You make one by killing somebody. It rips your soul apart. I never before heard about a wizard making more than one. What are the horcruxes?" Moody asked.

"The diary that was used to possess Ginny in Harry's second year to open the Chamber of Secrets, which Harry destroyed that year, Slytherin's locket, Hufflepuff's cup, Slytherin's ring which MOB destroyed, Ravenclaw's lost diadem, Voldemort's snake Nagini and Harry's scar. Of them only Nagini remains a horcrux." Tonks counted them down on her fingers.

"Harry was a horcrux?" Parvati asked shocked.

"Yes, he got rid of it with some help of the DoM from where they are." Remus confirmed.

"Do you know where they are?" Kingsley asked.

"No, they didn't write that. I guess to protect their hiding place." Remus answered.

"Good, constant vigilance." Moody said appreciatively.

"So, we really need to take out the snake. Could be tricky, but we will inform everybody that they need to kill the snake if they get the chance." Luna said.

"Yes. Now I think we should talk about out preparations for the expected take-over of the Ministry. We are too few to prevent it, so we should start getting the targets we can't protect here in Britain out of the country. We have made plans to get the muggleborns out before that happens. They will be sent to France to travel to other countries if they have family there. For the others Madame Maxime agreed to help with housing them and getting the children enrolled at Beauxbatons. The adults will be offered jobs if possible to get them over the time in exile. We have our lists and already wrote to those we knew to get them to prepare. After MOB is dead, there is nothing stopping Voldemort anymore. At least not until Harry and his friend come to take care of him. But we need to level the playing field before that." Neville said.

"Correct. Let's compare lists and make this a complete plan." Remus said and both groups started to plan the details.

* * *

><p><strong>And done. Hope you liked the new chapter. Till next time.<strong>


	22. Kaito Kid versus Harry and Conan

**Hi, sorry for the long wait with this story, but somehow I got caught up in my other stories too much to continue this one like I wanted to. but now the next chapter is done, so enjoy.**

* * *

><p><strong>Kaito Kid versus Harry and Conan<strong>

Harry, Conan, Ran, Sonoko and Kogoro stood in the audience listening to the welcome speech of Sonoko's father on the Queen Sallybeth. Celebrating the 60 year anniversary of Suzuki Enterprises they had invited the members of Japan's business high society. Once Sonoko had been informed that Harry was helping with the investigations in the Kaito Kid case, she had been more than happy to organize an invitation for him as well and let him search the ship before it put off to sea from Yokohama port. Just when Shiro Suzuki asked the guests to enjoy themselves and not let the announcement of Kaito Kid stop them from having fun, Sonoko's mother Tomoko appeared behind him and told the guests to open the little boxes that had been handed out at the entrance.

She informed the guests that she had planned a little challenge for all stupid thieves. Inside the boxes were replicas of the Black Star on a brooch. She further told everybody that only one original was among all the pearls and only she knew the one who had the real pearl. She then got some laughs from the guests when she said that while Kid was welcome to try and find out which one was the real Black Star, he wouldn't be able to find it during the three hours the ship would be on tour. Sonoko meanwhile missed her sister and decided to call her.

"Why are you still at home? The ship already left." Sonoko said.

"What? Father is at home as well?" Sonoko exclaimed surprised.

Harry and Conan nodded to each other and took off looking for Mr Suzuki. After Conan asked a man standing close to the door, he got the directions to the bathrooms. But arriving there he and Harry only found a discarded mask of Shiro Suzuki and his clothes. Kid had already changed masks.

"I'll take the disguise to Nakamori. You go back to the celebration room and inform the others. While Mori isn't that sharp, the more eyes look out for Kid, the better." Harry said and Conan nodded.

* * *

><p>"What do you mean; this No. 1412 is already on board?" Sonoko asked. "And he was disguised as my father?"<p>

"Yes, Harry and I found the mask and clothes and Harry is with Inspector Nakamori, discussing the next steps and giving the police the things for inspection. By the way, where is Ran?" Conan asked looking for her.

"She went to look for you, because you needed so long. Really, as if your cousin wasn't bad enough. We have to hope that this No. 1412 didn't take her." Kogoro commented.

"His name isn't No. 1412. His name is Kaito Kid. Remember that! Otherwise you only confuse things." Nakamori yelled at Kogoro.

"O-Okay." Kogoro answered.

Behind the Inspector Harry appeared.

"Who is that guy?" Kogoro whispered to Tomoko Suzuki.

"Inspector Ginzo Nakamori from the second department of the Tokyo police headquarters. He's the leading expert in the Kid heists." Harry said.

"Indeed, he, like you, is a noble knight on whom we can fully depend in protecting our family treasure, the Black Star, from Kid." Mrs Suzuki commented.

"But my dear Mrs Suzuki… each of the five hundred guests practically has a Black Star on his chest. And only one of them is real. The others perfect imitations. If you don't tell me which one is the real one, I can't guard it." Kogoro said.

"For a skilled eye it won't be any problem to at least narrow the number down. Take my one for example. The shine is too faint to be the true one, or yours, it shines far too brightly. Some of the less well-done imitations." She informed him.

"But even with that information, it will be next to impossible to look at each of the five hundred guests that closely." Kogoro reminded her.

"Well, I'll give you another clue. The Black Star, whose slightly dark green shade fascinated Grandfather so much in the past, was entrusted to a person who was really worthy of it." Mrs Suzuki said. "Among all the guests there is only one such person."

'A worthy person?' Harry thought.

Just then two people who Mori obviously knew from former cases appeared. They were the chef Shoji Hatamoto and the director of Mifune Electrics, Takuya Mifune. Then the fiancée of Sonoko's sister Ayako, Yuzo Tomizawa appeared, looking for Ayako.

While Mifune didn't wear his pearl, Kogoro pointed out to him that he would be much more suspect if he didn't wear it, so Mifune took out the cloth from his breast pocket, picked up the pearl and put the brooch with the pearl to the bond of his suit.

"What's taking Ran so long?" Kogoro asked.

"She probably got lost again. She simply has a bad sense of direction." Sonoko said.

"Bad is only your slander." Ran said embarrassed as she just returned.

"By the way, how does it look outside?" Sonoko asked.

"Bad, the whole corridors are full with policemen." Ran informed her friend.

Chief Inspector Chaki now stepped onto the stage.

"As some of you probably already found out, this impertinent master thief has managed to sneak onto the ship. As you know he is a master of disguise. He always studies his victims before he takes their appearance and he can imitate their voices and habits perfectly. It's very likely that he already is among us. Normally it would be appropriate to have all of you checked thoroughly, but of course such an act isn't proper. Therefore please think up code words. Arrange with the person next to you a code that only you know. I ask you to now think up code words in pairs of two." Chaki said.

"Really clever. He can't switch disguises this way and the police will immediately know if one of the guests errs with the code word." Kogoro approved the method.

Ran leaned down to Conan to ask him, so Harry took Sonoko as his partner.

"Sonoko, what should the code words for us be?" Harry asked.

"Hm, let me think. Ah, I know, as Kid is after the Black Star of my family I'll say Black. And as you are protecting it with the police, you'll say Knight." Sonoko said.

While Harry thought the code words stupid, he agreed with Sonoko. Suddenly the lights turned off.

* * *

><p>Nakamori was calling the control room why the light was turned off with his wireless. Then in the top corner of the room a smoke cloud appeared. All eyes were locked on the cloud and then a spotlight was directed at the place. There stood Kaito Kid who let off a few doves to make his appearance look more impressive.<p>

"Ha, ha, nice idea with the code words, but it's useless. Because I already hold the Black Star in my hands." He said, showing the pearl to the audience.

Then Tomoko Suzuki took out a small pistol from her handbag, saying a naughty thief like Kid needed to be punished, and fired at Kid six times, hitting him and causing blood splatters to appear on his white suit. Kid fell from his position down to the floor.

"Mother?" Sonoko asked shocked, seeing her mother blow away the smoke of her gun like a cowboy in the old Wild West films.

The light was turned on again and the guests creamed seeing the dead body of Kaito Kid lying on a table. Nakamori immediately laid into Mrs Suzuki why she killed Kid, when she revealed this all to have been a show act from an illusionist she had hired for a little entertainment. The illusionist was revealed to be Kazumi Manada, another face Conan already knew.

Manada proceeded to give a little show on the stage. Conan and Harry were looking around, trying to find anybody who was suspicious. Harry took a list of the guests out of the inside pocket of his jacket. He hoped to find anybody who fit the clue Sonoko's mother had given them. He and Conan peered over the list and then they found one name that fit the clues they had got.

"You have it?" Harry asked in a low voice.

"Yes, I know who has the real Black Star. But I don't have any idea who could be Kid; I'm just sure he already is here in the room." Conan answered.

"Let's keep watching the surroundings. Those at the stage involved in the trick could be Kid, but it could be anybody else as well. He just needs to get close to the one with the pearl." Harry said.

Both boys returned their attention to the stage. Ran and Sonoko had just handed Manada the pack of cards back. Manada was now pretending to foresee the card they would pull from his stack. He let a dove appear from his hand and then interpreted the sign as a symbol of love, so they would get the ace of hearts. Ran chose the card on the far right. But when she looked if the illusionist had been right, she was confused.

"K-Kid?" She shouted out, shocking the guests.

People surrounded Ran and read what was printed on the card.

Like Caesar can't resist Cleopatra's charm, I'm at your side as well. Kaito Kid.

People started to get nervous and Inspector Chaki shouted to have everybody assure the code words.

"What do you think, Nakamori? He couldn't already have the Black Star?" Chaki asked.

"Don't worry, he doesn't. Neither did he flee already. He only did it to start chaos to get the upper hand. But don't worry, we'll get him. He isn't a wizard. He only uses tricks to deceive the people. He is nothing more than a normal human." Harry said, grinning.

"Do you know more, Black?" Nakamori asked.

"Indeed. While I don't know who Kid turned into yet, I know where he will strike. I'm looking forward to taking his challenge." Harry answered.

The guests were talking worried and Inspector Chaki tried to calm them down. Nakamori ordered to close the room to not let Kid escape. Meanwhile Manada was trying to figure out how Kid had managed to get the card with his message stuck to the backside of one of his cards. Then Sonoko noticed that Ran's pearl had fallen off her brooch. Ran looked around and saw her pearl rolling on the ground.

When she just asked if somebody could pick it up, it started smoking and then exploded. Now other pearls rolled on the ground, starting to explode. People began panicking, throwing their brooches away to not become victims of the explosions and pushing around others to get away from the small explosions. Harry nodded to Conan and they kept a close eye on the one with the real Black Star. When Ran looked after Sonoko's mother who had been pushed to the ground, Sonoko noticed that the pearl of her mother was also gone. Mrs Suzuki screamed that Kid had stolen the Black Star.

Harry and Conan now knew where Kid had hidden. Harry let Conan take care of the next part while he followed the masses out of the room when they managed to overrun the policemen hat secured the doors.

* * *

><p>Conan led Ran into the machine room, telling her he had figured out who Kid was and that he wanted to tell her. In the machine room Ran was looking around confused.<p>

"And you're sure Kid has hidden here?" She asked.

"Hey, Ran, do you know what are the synonyms for pearl?" Conan asked, taking out a football from a place where he had stored it before the ship left Yokohama port.

"No, which ones?" Ran asked.

Conan now held the football in the air with his foot while talking.

"Sonoko's mother gave your dad a hint. She told him that she had given the Black Star to someone who was worthy of it. Synonyms for pearls are woman and moon. So I looked at the guest list. There was only one woman with the kanji for moon in her name and that was Tomoko Suzuki herself. Therefore I knew that she was the one who had the real pearl with her." Conan said.

"Really?" Ran asked.

"Okay, but why do you think you know who Kid is?" Ran asked.

"That's easy, it was the card. On the card you took from the pack was Kid's message, right?" Conan asked.

"Yes, and …?" Ran asked not seeing what Conan wanted to say.

"The illusionist's trick should have gone like this: While he made the dove magically appear with his right hand, therefore distracting the guests, he would have exchanged the pack in his left hand for a pack which only held aces of hearts. So it wouldn't have mattered who shuffled the cards." Conan explained.

"So, as the message was on the card, the illusionist Manada was Kid?" Ran asked.

"No, I kept an eye on him and he never came close to Sonoko's mother." Conan answered.

"So who is it then?" Ran asked exasperated.

"Wasn't there someone else who could have exchanged the card? This person pretended to pick up the cards that had fallen down, but in reality stole one of the cards and stuck the message on the backside. This card she then hid in the palm of her hand and pretended she took it out of the stack of cards of the illusionist. Right, Ran? Or should I rather say, Kaito Kid." Conan said, shocking Ran.

"You pretended to be Ran from the moment she left the party to search me. I'm impressed I didn't even notice. As a perfect copy of Ran you first scared the guests with that message and then created panic with the exploding pearls. Then you pretended to help Mrs Suzuki up and stole the Black Star. As you had prepared so many exploding pearls you must have known about Mrs Suzuki's plans with the imitations." Conan told Ran his deductions.

"Now stop it, Conan, that's nothing to joke about. I didn't know which pearl was the real one. And I didn't hear that clue Mrs Suzuki gave Dad." Ran denied being Kid.

"That might be, but you already knew that Mrs Suzuki had the real pearl when you saw her taking it out of the box with her gloved hands. The main component of pearls is calcium-carbonate. It's relatively susceptible to acids. If you touch one with your bare fingers, it gets dirtied with fat and starts oxidising, which leads to the pearl losing its shine over time. Some people among the guests knew that, but Mrs Suzuki would never just entrust her valuable family treasure to a careless guest." Conan said.

"But that's still not enough…" Ran protested.

"That alone might not be enough, but if you consider that Mrs Suzuki's pearl was only shining faintly, you only have to add two and two. All the famous and old pearls you can admire in museums for example only shine faintly. The bright shine of a pearl only stays for a few decades, so for the Black Star, who was bought sixty years ago to shine like a new pearl was impossible. When you saw how carefully Mrs Suzuki held her pearl, you knew it was the real Black Star. I should have noticed that before, but I was too fixated with my thoughts on you." Conan said.

"But the Black Star that was exhibited in the Baker Museum shone beautifully bright." Ran tried to get Conan away from his idea.

"And that was the reason you didn't steal it then. You immediately knew it was a fake. So you intentionally provoked Mrs Suzuki to bring the real Black Star on this cruise with your note. After all you wrote you would steal the real Black Star." Conan said.

"Okay, if you suspect me, I'll just call the police and then…" Ran said, but the phone was destroyed by a football that was shot into it by Conan with his power kick boots.

"Don't think I would let you escape with the same trick like that time on the roof. You didn't call the police to impress me and Harry; you did it to easily blend in with them by disguising yourself as a policeman. Everybody just assumed you had flown away with your hang glider again. And it would also be rather impolite to just disappear with a trick while I cornered you here to take you on on my own. Did you know that artists only get famous after their death? I'll make you very famous by putting you into prison, which will be your eternal grave." Conan said confidently.

"Hm, very interesting. I give up. You can have the pearl." Kid said now using his own voice, holding up the pearl in a cloth. "Please tell Mrs Suzuki that I'm sorry to have disturbed her nice party." He threw the pearl to Conan who caught it.

"What do you plan?" Conan asked.

"By the way, the girl I borrowed these clothes from is sleeping in one of the boats. If you don't give her clothes back soon, she might catch a cold. After all, being the perfectionist that I am, I borrowed everything." Kid said winking, holding up a bra.

Conan blushed heavily. Kid threw a flash grenade on the floor, blending Conan again and left the dress on the floor. Conan considered going after him, but considering Ran lying naked in a boat he took the dress and ran to the deck. And there still was Harry. He would make sure that Kid didn't escape.

* * *

><p>Harry stood close to the place where he had found Kid's hang glider. He was watching the exit of the machine room. Either Shinichi got Kid subdued with his tranquilliser gun or he would come out here. Then he saw a figure run from the room towards his position. He looked around and was obviously glad to see that nobody was keeping watch here. He came closer and Harry got to see his face briefly. He looked a lot like Shinichi.<p>

"Your escape ends here, Kid." Harry said.

"Harry? What are you talking about? It's me, Shinichi." Kid tried. "I heard about the note from Kid and got Inspector Nakamori to let me hide to get Kid while he was distracted by you and the police."

"Nice try, but I know with absolute certainty that you are not Shinichi Kudo. I wouldn't have thought you looked so much like him though. That must have come in handy before." Harry mused.

"So how do you know that I'm not Shinichi?" Kid asked, thinking hard how he could escape.

"If you were Shinichi you wouldn't even ask that. Let's just say I have an infallible method to recognize him. Now, why don't you help me understand something before I hand you over to the police, Kid? Why are you stealing jewels and then just return them shortly after?" Harry asked.

"Wouldn't you like to know that? But an illusionist never gives up his secrets." Kid said.

"A pity. Perhaps the good Inspector Nakamori can find out when he interrogates you. Then you can also tell him how you became the second Kaito Kid." Harry said shocking Kid.

"How do you know that?" He asked before he could stop himself.

"It was easy to deduct. The first time Kaito Kid appeared about ten to eleven years ago. But he didn't give the things he stole back to their owners. Then eight years ago Kaito Kid suddenly disappeared. No trace of him could be found after he stole a diamond. People thought he died. But then perhaps a year ago Kaito Kid reappeared. You are perhaps my age, sixteen or seventeen. There is no way you could be the original Kaito Kid. So who was it? Your father?" Harry guessed.

Kid's look on his face stayed calm, a true poker face, but Harry knew he had hit bull's eye.

"Hm, you seem to be a worthy opponent, Harrison Black, or should I say, Harry Potter?" Kid asked, now surprising Harry. "Surprised? You aren't the only one who can collect information. I'm sure you have your reasons for living under a false name, as I have for stealing jewels and giving them back. Some secrets should probably be kept secrets."

"The only way you could know my real name would be that you are…" Harry started.

"A real wizard. Indeed. I'm nowhere near as strong as you are said to be, but it is so much more fun to impress people with the skills I learned from my father. You're right. I'm the successor of my father who was murdered eight years ago. Knowing my face you'll soon find out my name. But this is the only way I can get the murderers of my father." Kid said.

They heard shouts coming closer.

"I would stay, but I don't think Inspector Nakamori would be happy to see me here. So I have to take my leave. Until sometime later, Harry." He said and spun on the spot and vanished.

"Damn it. I didn't think he was a real wizard. With all his tricks he looked like a muggle." Harry cursed. But he would investigate more closely.

* * *

><p>Harry later reported that Kid hadn't appeared to get his hang glider to flee. With how close they were to Tokyo port he assumed he had jumped into the sea and swum back the last few kilometres. For an athlete like him that shouldn't have been a problem. After all, he could hardly tell the muggle police that Kaito Kid was a real wizard.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Done. I hope I can update this story more regularly from now on. Till next time.<strong>


	23. Alliance

**Hi, here is the next chapter and I'm finally introducing Ai / Shiho into the mix. Happy reading.**

* * *

><p><strong>Alliance<strong>

Back at home Harry informed Sirius and Shinichi about what he had found out.

"So Kid is a wizard. And he tries to find the murderers of his father. There must be a connection between Kaito Kid then and those murderers." Shinichi said.

"Yes, and if we searched all the class lists of the high schools around Tokyo we'll easily find him as I saw his face. You and he look scarily alike." Harry said.

"You said he was mainly after jewels recently?" Sirius asked.

"Yes, the biggest jewels there are. And he always makes it a big show. Well, that probably is to get the murderers of his father out of their hiding place." Harry confirmed from what he had read in the files of the second department of the Tokyo police. "Do you have an idea?"

"Perhaps. I heard about a very magical stone during my work. I was briefed on the most precious gems and one stood out to me, as it sounded like something Voldemort could be after. The gem is called Pandora. Over time it was lost what kind of jewel it is, but it is known that it is one of the biggest jewels. Pandora, following the myths, is a stone that, if held into the moonlight, shows a second stone inside the normal jewel, which will shine bright red. At a certain time if you hold the stone into the moonlight at a full moon, a tear will be produced from the stone, which will give the drinker eternal life." Sirius said.

"Precisely. And an organization that is after Pandora killed my father eight years ago." They heard a voice coming from the kitchen.

They jumped from their seats and saw a boy of seventeen standing there relaxed.

"I thought as you probably would find out my identity anyway, I could as well come and discuss with you if you couldn't keep my secret. After all, you seem to have your own secrets as well. And I never really steal anything as I give it back every time." Kid said.

"Pff, you really have guts I have to give you, that. We can discuss this and then decide what we do. Well, I think introductions are due. You already know my name, Harry Potter." Harry said.

"Yes, the famous Boy-Who-Lived who is missed in his home country because they are unable to get rid of one dark lord on their own. Well, my real name is Kaito Kuroba and the first Kaito Kid was my father, Toichi Kuroba." Kaito said.

"Sirius Black, infamous prisoner of Azkaban, but completely innocent. Well, as far as a master prankster can be innocent." He admitted.

"Shinichi Kudo." Shinichi said.

"Ah, that definitely explains how Harry knew that I wasn't you. Definitely a good method of identification." Kaito admitted. "I had suspected that there was more to you than it seemed. No normal primary school student should have seen through my tricks. What happened to you?"

"Nasty clash with a criminal organization." Shinichi answered.

"Hm, they don't by any chance have a member called Snake?" Kaito asked.

"Never heard that name. I know of two called Gin and Vodka. There also was a man called Tequila, but he got blown up." Shinichi answered. "Where did I hear the name Kuroba before?"

"Well, my father was famous as an illusionist all over the world." Kaito said.

"No, it was something else. Ah, now I remember. My mother took lessons from him in disguising herself when I was a child. And she mentioned him in one of her essays." Shinichi remembered.

"Ah, yes, I met her once. She was a bit vain about her age. I gave her a rose as a present and told her it was because she was such a pretty auntie. She didn't look happy at all." Kaito told them.

"Yes, that would have set her off. She hates being called old." Shinichi confirmed.

"So back to the topic. Can you describe that man or any others you met?" Harry asked.

"Snake is about one meter and ninety tall, bulky built, but all muscle. He wears a black trench coat with a black normal hat. I think nearly all he wears is black. His minions whom I don't know the names of, also mostly wear black. They've shown themselves a few times now. I found out about Pandora when I followed them to the hideout of their boss. But when I directed Nakamori and his team there, they abandoned the place. They killed my father because he didn't want to hand over the diamond he stole. They also knew his true identity. I only know that they belong to an organization, but I don't know if it is the same you talked about." Kaito explained.

"It sounds like it is the same organization. The guys I know also mostly wear black. From a member in the low ranks just before she needed to go on a lengthy hospital stay, thanks to injuries from being shot by another member, we found out that they all wear the colour black. They are involved in all kinds of crime. That they are looking for a magical stone is concerning." Shinichi said.

"I think the same. So do we have an agreement? We don't rat each other out and share information? I'll see if I can find out more on my end and you on yours?" Kaito asked.

"Do you promise to stop stealing as soon as you get them?" Shinichi asked.

"Yes. I only started stealing after I found out about my father's murder. If I had another idea on how to find them I wouldn't resort to stealing. While giving a great show is really exiting, I don't really like showing up Inspector Nakamori all the time. While it is quite funny sometimes, he is the father of my best friend. But the guy is so easy to trick most of the time." Kaito said.

Shinichi looked at Harry and Sirius. They nodded.

"Okay, we can work together. I think it would be best if we exchanged mobile numbers to contact each other quickly if necessary." Shinichi said.

"Yes, that might be best. So, are you any closer to reverting the deaging?" Kaito asked.

"Yes, I've got fairly far. But to really find a cure I would need the poison itself or more information on it. I have isolated a few components of a liquor that turned Shinichi back once for a short time. But before we test it I want to be sure it works." Harry said.

"Yes, it would be bad if something went wrong and he couldn't ever change back again." Kaito agreed.

"That's the reason Harry gave me. If you by any chance can steal the poison from a member of the organisation if you ever come across them, I would be really grateful." Shinichi said.

"I'll see what I can do." Kaito promised.

* * *

><p>Harry was on his way to Professor Agasa. Shinichi had sent him a strange message about a new girl in his class. Harry wondered why she was so strange. Normally Shinichi would simply keep to his small group of primary school friends that stuck to him like glue. He thought back to his last case. He had impressed Inspector Megure once more and even Chief inspector Matsumoto had praised his deduction skills. That was pretty awesome. If only there weren't so many murders he stumbled across. He sometimes felt that he and Shinichi were cursed to find crime scenes obscenely often. He finally reached the house and entered through the gate. He rang the bell at the door and was called inside by the Professor.<p>

"Good evening, Professor." Harry greeted.

"Good evening, Harry. Thanks for coming this quickly." The Professor said.

"Shinichi's message sounded urgent so I came as soon as I could." Harry told the older man.

"It's a good thing you did. We were about to call somebody in Shizuoka to follow a lead on the poison Shinichi took." The Professor informed Harry.

"Really, that's great." Harry exclaimed happily.

He really wanted his best friend back to normal.

"Yes it is, but now you should meet my new housemate. She's the reason Shinichi wrote to you." The Professor said.

Harry realised that there had to be more to the story and followed the Professor into the living room where Shinichi was staring at a red-blond girl his age intently.

"Harry, good that you're here." Shinichi greeted him.

"Your message seemed urgent, so what's the matter?" Harry asked.

"Well, this is Ai Haibara who from today on joined my class at Teitan Elementary School. The others drafted her into the Detective Boys immediately and we solved a case with a ring of money fakers. It got quite dangerous in the end because the boss of the gang wouldn't have hesitated to kill us. Ai is a fake name, I don't know her real name as she didn't give it to me. But you won't believe what other name she goes by. Sherry." Shinichi told Harry.

"A member of the organisation? Why the hell is she here and you not up in arms?" Harry asked.

"Because I fled from the organisation. I worked for them as a scientist and in fact I was the one to develop the APTX 4869 that Kudo took and which turned him into a child. I didn't originally plan to develop a poison, the goal of the project was something totally different. But some time ago the organisation killed my sister. I asked over and over again why, but I didn't get information. I threatened them to stop my work if they didn't finally answer my questions and was punished. I was held captive in a storage room of my working place. To escape the organisation, as I knew I would be killed for my rebellion, I took the poison I had developed. I expected a quick death, but like Kudo I shrunk and slipped from the handcuffs that kept me imprisoned. I could flee from the laboratory and the one person I thought could help me was Kudo, so I ran to his house. From an investigation at his house that I was part of I knew he was alive as I had noticed that his old clothes from when he was a child were gone." Ai explained.

"In the testing stage of the poison, when the organisation decided that even if it wasn't the desired result of the project it was very valuable as it killed without a trace, one of the mice returned to its child's stage. So knowing this I concluded that Kudo, who had been given APTX 4869, had been turned into a child. As I was in the same situation I hoped he could help me. He had graciously agreed to not tell the police as it would only endanger him as well."

"I see. And what is this about the call to Shizuoka?" Harry asked.

"A few years ago my sister sent me some diskettes with pictures from her holidays. I watched them on a computer at the lab and then sent them back. After that one of the diskettes with all data on the poison on it was gone as well. So I thought that the Professor that my sister studied under could still have that strange diskette. So we are going to call him. He lives in Shizuoka." Ai said.

"What's his name?" Harry asked.

"Professor Masami Hirota of the Nanyo University." She answered.

"Okay, that's probably a good idea. How much time do you think we have before the organisation is after him? They probably have information that one of their diskettes went missing around the same time you sent the vacation photo diskettes back." Harry deducted.

"I don't know, but they are currently looking for me with all available means. They need me dead because I know too much about them." Ai said.

"Okay, Professor, can you do the call?" Harry asked.

The Professor did and soon he had confirmation that Professor Hirota still had the diskette. He then asked about the name of Ai's sister.

"Akemi Miyano." She informed the Professor.

Both Harry and Shinichi looked at Ai in wonder.

"You're Shiho Miyano?" Harry asked surprised. "Talk about coincidences. I should have remembered that your sister said that your code name was Sherry."

"Wait, when did you talk to my sister?" Shiho demanded to know.

"The last time was two weeks ago. She's still recovering from being shot by Gin. The damage has mostly healed but there was a complication with her not taking well to one of the medicines she had to take which slowed the healing down a bit." Harry answered. "We were planning on contacting you once she was out of the hospital to get you out of the organisation."

"Akemi is alive?" Shiho asked trembling.

"Yes, and she'll be eager to see you again." Harry assured her.

It broke a dam in the girl and she started sobbing uncontrollably. Harry went over and took her into his arms. He felt that she needed somebody to comfort her now. Meanwhile Shinichi and the Professor got the car ready to drive to Shizuoka. Once Shiho had calmed down a bit she and Harry joined the two in the car. After all, even if Shiho had developed the poison, she didn't remember every little detail about it. So getting the diskette was still important.

* * *

><p>It seemed that the curse had struck again. Professor Hirota had been killed and everything looked like an accident. But there were clues that it wasn't one if you looked closer. The receiver of the phone lay in its normal position even if the phone seemed to have fallen onto its head with an open book on top. That one was too much to be a coincidence. Harry and Shinichi went to work, even if Shiho didn't believe that they could solve this case as there was simply no proof that could reveal the culprit.<p>

The room the professor had died in had been locked, there was only a very small space under the door and as the key to the room lay under a notebook, nobody thought that it might be possible to create a locked room. The diskettes were all gone and a lot of data seemed to have been deleted from the PC. The investigation of the answering machine revealed that a total of thirteen messages had been recorded and one to their surprise was the voice of Vodka.

This meant that while the organisation had found out about the diskette gone missing and that it was probably with Professor Hirota, they hadn't acted yet as they wouldn't have made a mistake like leaving the vice of one of their members on the tape. They would have either exchanged the tape or destroyed it if they had been the culprits of this murder.

The people that had announced that they would come by this evening had been called, or had come by themselves and the police had asked them for their alibis. There was an old acquaintance, Michio Morioka, with whom the Professor regularly played chess, a model, Akira Shirokura, who had been a student at the university where the Professor taught and who wanted a certain photo from him for an article and the father of a new student for the university, Kazuhiro Hosoya, who wanted to ask the professor for a letter of recommendation. The latter's statement that the professor had been fairly drunk played a big part in the belief that it had been an accident caused by drunkenness.

"I know you two are known to solve ever the most difficult cases, but this seems to be a clear case of an accident. Just accept that you're checkmate." Shiho said and put one of the chess figures that lay around onto the phone.

Harry grinned as did Shinichi.

"Oh, no, this is clearly a murder case and thanks to you, I now know the trick of the culprit." Harry said.

"Huh?" Shiho asked shocked. "It wouldn't work to place the notebook onto the chess figures, the bottom is too stable to let them all fall away under the notebook. You could never make sure that the key ended under the notebook with none of the figures under it."

"Watch and learn, Ai." Harry said and Shinichi set about getting everything they needed for the demonstration.

* * *

><p>Soon Harry had called all the people involved in the case together. Thankfully the investigating inspector was Yokomizo whom Harry already knew from previous cases, so he wasn't being difficult in letting Harry assist with the case.<p>

"Thank you all for your patience, I have solved the mystery behind this case and I will now reveal how the culprit let this room look as if Professor Hirota died in an accident, even if it was murder." Harry said.

"What? Who are you to claim something like that?" Mr Hosoya asked annoyed.

"Ah, I seem to have forgotten to introduce myself. I'm Harrison Black, I'm a detective." Harry introduced himself.

"The Hawk?" Professor Hirota's wife asked.

"Indeed. And I have spotted the trick that the culprit used to lock this room after he murdered Professor Hirota." Harry spoke. "The culprit, after he had hit Professor Hirota over the head with the statue, was faced with the sudden situation of having to hide his involvement with the murder. I think it wasn't a planned murder, otherwise there wouldn't have been so many clues to how the room was locked left. First there is the phone. The receiver is firmly in position and that is impossible if the phone simply fell to the ground. Another strange part is that there are totally thirteen messages on the tape. That makes you believe that the phone and the tape might have played a role in the trick to close the room to make this look like a locked room murder. My cousin has got some materials to show you which trick the culprit used. Conan, please show them."

Shinichi stepped forward, a new tape for the answering machine in his hands.

"You see, the culprit only had one chance to get out of the circle of suspects. He had to make it look like an accident and for that he needed to get the key into a position in the room where nobody would think a trick could have been used. If I draw a good part of the tape out and put the tape into the answering machine, I have a lot of distance that I can cover. I take the tape to the door and then I pull the tape through the key. From there I return with the tape towards the phone. All of this in a straight line to make sure the tape doesn't get caught anywhere. Now I use three pawns from the chess set and place them in a triangle formation." Shinichi explained. "The loop of the tape I place around the pawn that is closest to the phone and I last place the notebook onto the pawns."

"So you think it could be possible that they key would come to rest under the notebook. With the stable feet of the pawns that wouldn't work, the key would be drawn out under the notebook before it could fall down and the whole trick would be done for." Shiho commented.

"Just wait a moment, Ai." Shinichi said. "I have to do one last thing. The pawns stand upside down."

"Correct. The heads may be round, but with the notebook stabilising the structure they keep standing." Harry threw in. He took his mobile once Shinichi was done. "I think seeing is believing. Let's demonstrate how this will work."

Harry left the room and closed the door. Then he called the phone and waited till the answering machine activated. The key was drawn into the room from under the door and slip over the ground towards the structure. Once the key hit the pawn closest to the phone it was knocked down, the loop around it and through the key's ring pushed on, the notebook fell down and the key was under the notebook. Harry returned to the room.

"Wow, that really worked." Mr Hosoya exclaimed astonished.

"Of course it did." Shinichi spoke up.

"Trust the Hawk to spot something like that." Yokomizo stated. "But as the trick needed a long time to be performed, so only one person could have done it. Mr Akira Shirokura, the one who left a total of ten messages on the tape."

"Now, now, I'll admit that with the trick I could have indeed managed to prepare the room like this, but that isn't proof that I killed Professor Hirota. The only thing that speaks against me is that I left so many messages." Mr Shirokura said, trying to defend himself.

"That would be true, but there is something else. You only came back for one thing. You hoped you could secure the tape unnoticed once the police had left, ruling this as an accident. After all, the tape is full of your finger prints and those are definite proof that you are the culprit." Harry declared.

This shocked Mr Shirokura.

"I had a closer look at the tape when we inspected it and noticed that it was full of somebody's fingerprints. There was no logical reason that Professor Hirota would have left them there, so the only person that could have left them is the culprit. It also proves that this was a crime in the heat of the moment. Otherwise you would have brought gloves and used them like Conan did in the demonstration." Harry pointed out. "I assume you and the Professor got into an argument when you visited him and in the end you beat him dead. You thankfully came up with the trick I had my cousin demonstrate and made it look as if this had been an accident in a locked room. After that you waited until Mrs Hirota returned to make sure she could testify that the room had been locked. You would then have come for your supposed meeting with the Professor, have helped Mrs Hirota breaking into the room and in the mess you could have secured the tape. The only problem with the plan was that we came along earlier than you and called the police immediately."

"I see, it could have worked out either way as while we would wonder about the ten messages, it was better than having silent calls as that would have looked a lot more suspicious." Professor Agasa realised. "And we would have found the finger prints for sure."

"Correct. I think we can solve the rest easily. I think Mr Shirokura will have the discs he took from the Professor somewhere close by. He had to make sure to be ready once the Professor was found after all. In the short amount of time he couldn't have checked them all and found the one he was after." Harry pointed out.

"So, why don't we go and have a look around at your home?" Inspector Yokomizo asked.

"You don't need to do that. All the discs are in my car which is parked in front of the house. Even the one with that photo." Mr Shirokura admitted.

It turned out that Mr Shirokura to be able to become a model had undergone plastic surgery. Professor Hirota had sent him a photo with his former looks and not the one he had asked for where he had been disguised as a woman. Some insensible comments had led to the attack as Mr Shirokura had feared that the editorial office would find out his secret and he had hit Professor Hirota, who had been really drunk, over the head, unintentionally killing him.

"I think Professor Hirota wanted to achieve that you had more confidence in yourself and therefore sent you the picture with your former face, Mr Shirokura. He wanted to tell you that you didn't need to lie to yourself." Professor Agasa told the cuffed culprit.

"I wish Professor Hirota had told me that. It's really tragic." Mr Shirokura said sadly while he was led away.

"That was a brilliant deduction again, Harry." Inspector Yokomizo praised.

"Thank you." Harry said. "I try to help where I can. By the way, we came here for one of the discs as well. When do you think they'll be released?"

"We need to inspect them thoroughly at the station before that can happen, so I would guess a week or so." Inspector Yokomizo said.

"Okay, well, we should go home then." Professor Agasa said.

"I'll come by later. I first need to give my statements at the station, Professor." Harry said, knowing from experience.

"Alright, are you going to call your uncle?" Professor Agasa asked.

"Yes, I'll do so as soon as we are at the station. Please take care of the children." Harry said and then followed Inspector Yokomizo out.

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, now things are going to get going again. The alliance with Kaito and Ai being introduced will lead to pushing things forward and a bit away from the Detective Conan manga again. Till next time.<strong>


	24. Deceiving Ran

**Hi, I finally managed to get the next chapter done. With all my other stories and ideas, I sadly neglected this one a bit. But now the next chapter is done. Happy reading.**

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><p><strong>Deceiving Ran<strong>

Harry stood next to Shinichi while Shiho had the diskette that the police had given Harry after his statement had been taken down for the official report. It was a perk of being a well-known high school detective. Harry had simply asked Inspector Yokomizo to look for the diskette he needed and check it out first. As there was only non-important data that didn't have anything to do with Professor Hirota on it, Harry was allowed to take it with him. Shiho explained that the parts of the diskette that held the formula and the secret identities of the organisations members were only accessible with a special password.

It was early in the morning. Harry had slept at the Professor's house for the night, sharing the guest room with Shinichi, and now they were all eager to find out what was on the diskette. Before Shiho could start Harry asked a few questions.

"Do you think that there could be safety measures against the diskette being read besides the password to unlock the critical data?" Harry asked.

Shiho paused, thinking about it.

"That could very well be the case. They could have put a virus onto the diskette that activates as soon as the diskette isn't read from a computer that is registered with the organisation," Shiho admitted. "They normally are very thorough."

"Then perhaps we should wait with this until we can make sure that we get all the data on the diskette and don't lose it. The information is too valuable to lose. Not only the formula, but also the names. It wouldn't help both of you much if you got back to your real age, but then had to keep hidden all the time because there were too many agents that we could have found out if we simply waited," Harry voiced his concerns.

"But we need to get the formula as soon as possible," Shinichi said. "How could we get around the security measures?"

"I'll send a message to Kaito to look out for a computer like that," Harry said and tipped a mail on his mobile. "If he gets the chance, he can try for both the poison and the computer, whatever is easier."

"Makes sense. Shiho, can you tell us about the basics of the poison?" Shinichi asked.

"Yeah, but I can't recall all the specifics. The APTX is short for apoptoxin. Apoptosis is the name for the natural cell death. It's a vital ability of our body that cells can kill themselves. If the instruction for that is suppressed the body stays alive," Shiho explained. "The poison uses the ability and increases the speed at which the cells multiply and kills them all. That's why it can't be detected. It is basically a natural process. Apoptosis is part of the human body. No forensics expert would ever think to look for it."

"Hm, you mentioned that the original purpose of the poison wasn't being a poison at all. If you experimented with apoptosis it stands to reason that you tried stopping the natural cell death in a way," Harry pondered.

Shiho looked shocked. That was about too close to the true purpose of the research she had been tasked with.

"Somebody is trying to cheat death and I don't like that at all," Harry stated grimly. "Do you know for what they need the research?"

"Not truly. The only information we got was that the boss was massively interested in the project. It has also been around for decades. My late parents also worked on it," Shiho told them. "I have no idea though why certain individuals get turned back into children and most people die. I couldn't find an explanation for it. Only one mouse among the hundreds that were tested transformed. The others all died."

"I think I know the reason. I experimented with Shinichi's blood and the liquor that he once drank and got his true body back and I found some similarities," Harry said.

"Really? What are they?" Shiho asked interested.

"What do you know about schools like Hogwarts, Salem or Fukujori?" Harry asked, listing some of the leading magical schools.

"Oh my god, you mean magic is the reason?" Shiho asked disbelievingly.

Harry now was glad that Professor Agasa had a muggleborn wizard for a brother and was in the know of magic.

"Yes. From your reaction I guess you went to one of the magical schools?" Harry asked.

"Yes, I was enrolled at Salem. They have a special program that combines mundane and magical subjects. You have to take at least four mundane subjects each year and pass them at least with an A to get into the following year. Not to mention that there are a number of classes that are simply mixed. Herbology teaches about both normal and magical plants, Biology similarly covers both sides and there is a class called technomagic that has been started only ten years ago when the development of mundane technology started to speed up," Shiho said. "So you are all wizards as well?"

"No, only Shinichi and I. Professor Agasa is a mundane, but he has a mundane-born wizard for a brother who went to Fukujori," Harry answered.

"How did you know that I was a witch?" Shiho asked.

"I didn't know, but I suspected it. Akemi was found to be a squib so there was some probability that you were a witch or a squib as well," Harry explained.

"Okay, that makes sense. Our parents were a very weak witch and wizard respectively and they were concerned that Akemi and I wouldn't have enough magic to be allowed into one of the good schools. Surprisingly I had an average magic level," Shiho said. "I was sent to America to study by the organisation. They wanted to make sure I used the high intelligence I was tested for. Thankfully Salem had ways to hide the true nature of the school. It was disguised as an elite private school and as I could prove to the other scientists that I was on their level or above in science nobody got suspicious."

"So they don't know about magic?" Harry asked.

"As far as I know, they don't," Shiho answered.

"Good, it would have been a lot worse if they did," Shinichi mentioned relieved.

"So, if you know so much about the poison and magic causing the deaging, what else can you tell me?" Shiho asked Harry.

"I have isolated some magical components in the liquor that Shinichi drunk once. Mundanes wouldn't notice them when they drink it, there aren't enough of them in there to even cause strange effects that have been noticed with other magical plants if they are consumed by non-magicals. The components trigger a timely limited aging of the cells. I have looked into common ageing or deaging potions to get an idea what the most used ingredients are and which parts of them cause the effect to make the change permanent," Harry said.

"We most probably would need to find a way to combine magic and science to get the result we want. I didn't even think to look more into magical plants when working on the project. APTX 4869 was, as I said, more of an accident than a wanted result. From what I remember, I didn't use anything that should have reacted in a magical way," Shiho commented.

Harry and Shiho launched into a discussion about the research Shiho had done, which parts triggered the development of the poison and more or less completely blended Shinichi and the Professor out. Shinichi was torn. He knew that Harry hadn't had the chance to truly discuss his research with anybody who could understand what he was doing. Professor Agasa didn't know anything more about magic than the basics, Sirius was merely competent in Potions and muggle science was more or less a mystery for him and Shinichi was just learning things about magic. They were concentrating on spells and things that would help him survive after all.

Harry seemed to love being able to discuss things on an equal level and to Shinichi's surprise Shiho seemed to open up a lot more than before around Harry. They seemed to click. He knew that Shiho was about 18 if he remembered correctly what Akemi had told them about her. So she and Harry were close in age. Would Harry be likely to fall for Shiho, a former member of the organisation? His sense of justice was screaming at him, but then again, Shiho hadn't chosen to join the organisation. She had simply been put into it thanks to her parents being members from the time she had been a child.

He remembered what Akemi had told them about her life. While she had been allowed to have a mostly normal life, with the occasional job to be done for the organisation, Shiho had been put into programs to use her brilliant mind for the organisation. And her biggest sin was creating that poison. Something she said was an accident that had been used by the organisation until they had the poison that caused him his grief, even if there were some advantages to it with his magic getting more time to grow to his full potential.

So perhaps he should hold off judgement until he knew her better. If she was willing to cooperate with Harry like she seemingly did, it would benefit them all.

* * *

><p>Neville sat in a meeting of the two resistance organisations. They had decided to make a major move to thwart the take-over of the Ministry for a while. They all knew that it wouldn't take too long before the Death Eaters made their move. So they needed to act before it was too late. Having to act against the Ministry as well as the Death Eaters would make things a lot more difficult than before.<p>

"Alright, we have secured a way into the ministry for the first of August," Tonks announced. "From the little we could find out about the schedule of the Death Eaters, the take-over is planned for the third. There are only three ways into the Ministry by magic. The visitor's entrance, the floo and apparition. The floo is watched by sympathisers of Voldy and there are wards to detect apparition outside of the atrium. The visitor's entrance, while workable, only lets a small number get inside and all visitors get recorded.

"What most people don't know is that there is another, non-magical way to get into the building that isn't bound to low numbers," Tonks pointed to a point at the third floor of the building. "When the Ministry decided to put the building underground, they had to make sure that the structure wouldn't be noticed by the muggles. So they went with a trick. They made it look as if they were building a normal office building. Back in 1754 it was much easier to get away with that. They built a four story building on the surface with a normal sized basement. Once the first two stories were up, they continued digging. The entrance I pointed out was once a tunnel to get the earth from digging out without the muggles noticing. It comes out two streets away from the Ministry building."

"Who does know about this?" Neville asked.

"Only the head of the DMLE, the DOM and the Minister. But honestly, most of them didn't bother reading all parts of the books they were given. With Madam Bones's dead through Voldy's hand, the new head, Pius Thicknesse, didn't have the time to truly read all the important memos and Scrimgeour was too busy to care. So the only person that will be aware of the entrance is Croaker, but he won't be a problem. The DOM got a lot of trouble for the breach in their security two years ago. He's been busy working out a better warding scheme and entrance checks," Tonks pointed out.

"So we get in through the tunnel, go to the Minister's office and ward it to hell and back, giving Scrimgeour a better chance to escape," Mad-Eye stated. "Next to that we should bug all offices of known Death Eaters and sympathisers and leave some nasty surprises that will make the take-over take more time than they planned."

"That's the plan. We sadly can't really do much about Hogwarts, as McGonagall and the traitors have made it into their stronghold. Of course we easily managed to get in there despite of that, but more than sneaking a few people in to get things we can use better than them wasn't smart," Fred spoke up.

"Indeed, we basically raided the greenhouses for any plants that we will need to supply our side with potions and we also kidnapped a few creatures for the same reason. Nothing too large though. For things from larger creatures we raided the potions storage rooms in the dungeons. They were still fully stocked thanks to Snape leaving them as they were. He's probably sure that he can get everything back once they take the school," George confirmed grinning.

"Good, the less supplies they have, the better," Remus said. "I guess you've used some of them for your inventions?"

"Indeed. We have full stocks on shield products, decoy detonators, listening devices, healing and disguise potions, instant darkness powder, stun grenades and a lot more. We put a list together with descriptions on how everything works. Everybody should take the time to read over it. We'll answer questions as they come up, but most is pretty straight forward," Fred confirmed.

"And news from Harry?" Susan asked.

"Only that he's busy training. But if he keeps to his normal schedule, we should get another letter at the end of the week. His partner is getting better as far as we know. But Harry always keeps some secrecy about what he's exactly doing," Remus answered.

"No wonder after what the lad went through," Moody spoke up. "I wouldn't wonder if he decided to return to his hiding place once the trouble here is taken care of. From the letters you showed us, I got the impression that he's quite happy."

"That's true. Sirius is as well," Remus admitted. "I think you could be right, but it'll depend on how things go here and how people will treat him once he returns. He has friends here after all that he took the effort to keep in contact with."

They all nodded. The idea that Harry could decide to live in Japan instead of England had come up in their minds, but honestly, nobody could blame him if he did just that. He hadn't been treated well here and if he found happiness in the far-away country, what right would they have to force him to stay here?

* * *

><p>Shinichi was in a really bad position. Ran was about to find out his true identity. And that when Harry and Ai were getting a lot closer to finally finding a treatment for the poison. Oh, there had been other situations before, but this time Ran was getting too close and Shinichi knew that he would need a wonder to make her believe that he was just a child and not her childhood friend who had shrunk. He couldn't put her into that danger. The one thing he had managed was that he had sent an SOS message to Harry with his mobile. He only hoped that his best friend would find a way to get him out of this situation. He thought back how this had started.<p>

**Flashback**

Ran and Sonoko were walking back home from school. Conan, as he didn't have plans for this day as Harry had a test at his martial arts class, had met with them and was now walking next to them. Sonoko was telling Ran about a sale that would take place the next weekend at a popular fashion boutique in the Haido district. Conan wasn't interested in this clearly girl's activity and pondered the new situation with Ai being included into the Detective Boys. It helped having her be a second voice of reason with the children. And especially Ayumi liked having another girl around to talk to.

Not that Mitsuhiko and Genta were any less happy to have Ai in the group. They had played football in the park yesterday and he had had to remind Ai to behave more like a child as she often fell into the behaviour of an adult. It had happened to him as well in the beginning. From the looks the other two boys gave Ai, they thought she was really pretty and if they were older, they might be trying to win her favour. Well, he could tell fairly sure that Ai was more interested in Harry. Not to mention that she was much older than the children.

Then he was startled out of his thoughts by Ran asking him something.

"Uh, what did you ask Ran? Sorry, I was thinking about something," Conan said apologetically, rubbing the back of his head.

"I asked what you would like for dinner, Conan," Ran repeated.

"Oh, how about sushi?" Conan suggested.

"Sushi, yes, we could do that. Dad's away anyway, so he wouldn't be able to complain about the restricted selection I can make right now. Even if it's his fault that money is tight this month," Ran grumbled.

Conan sighed. Yes, the old drunk had brought them into this situation. He had lost about thirty thousand Yen through bets on horse races and throwing a party for his latest 'success' in a case. Even if it had been Conan who had solved it again. Uncle Kogoro had only talked nonsense all the time, making a fool out of himself. Now their remaining monthly budget was limited to very basic things. It was why he had suggested the sushi. He knew that there was a sale on fish at the local supermarket this week and that Ran would easily be able to get a few things for the sushi. And rice was cheap.

Then he saw a man walk up to them seemingly only listening to the music from his headphones. But Conan didn't truly think he was just listening to the music. His body language was off. There was only the normal traffic, but there was a green car parked a little ahead of them. He got ready to act if the guy did something. When the man was next to Sonoko, Ran was between her and Conan, the man suddenly grabbed Sonoko and the door of the car was thrown open. They were basically directly beside the car. Conan acted. He jumped forward and hit the man with his school bag right into the left kidney. The man shouted in pain and it was enough for Ran to act.

She used some very effective karate techniques to knock the attacker out and Conan made sure to memorize the number plate of the car. He, after looking at Sonoko, who was frantic and assure by Ran that she was safe, wrote down the number to give it to the police later. He was quite sure that the car was either stolen or the number plate faked, but right now it was their best clue. And perhaps the police could make the attacker talk and tell them who his accomplice was. He then saw Ran look at him astonished.

"How did you know that he would attack Sonoko? You reacted even faster than I could, Conan," Ran wanted to know.

"His body language. He tried to appear only listening to the music. But his muscles were really tense, a clear sign that he planned to move quickly. Then he often kept glancing to the green car, and I saw him take his hand from his pocket when he got close to the car. It was clear that he planned something from that. Though I had first though about pick-pocketing and not kidnapping. There's after all a gang active that steals from pockets in this area," Conan explained.

Ran looked at him strangely. Shit, he had fallen back into his habit of announcing his deductions again. And she had barely bought the ruse when his mother had pretended that he was really just a child of a distant relative after the case with the murdered magician.

"Harry told me to look out for things like that and Shinichi also always said that looking for details was really important for a detective," Conan tried diverting the suspicion.

"Huh, well you could expect 'The Hawk' to teach his cousin something like that," Sonoko finally said after having calmed down a bit. "Thank you for your help, you two. I don't want to imagine what they would have done with me had they been successful." She shuddered.

"You're welcome, Sonoko. Ran, we should call the police to arrest that man. They'll probably want to question him," Conan said and Ran nodded.

Sonoko gave Ran her mobile and she called Inspector Megure.

**Flashback end**

Sadly Ran had been much more observant since that point and had collected a high number of little clues that all pointed at Conan and Shinichi being one and the same person. Shinichi had hidden away to not be confronted by her, but he knew it wouldn't last forever. Mori had a meeting with Megure in half an hour and then she could confront him all she liked. Hopefully Harry could help.

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><p>Ran looked at Conan who looked distinctly uncomfortable. She was sure now that he was hiding something. And she thought that what he hid was that he was truly Shinichi. She didn't understand how it had happened, but right now she suspected that the mystery idiot had bitten off more than he could chew and crossed a dangerous criminal and therefore had got some experimental drug from the Professor to turn into a child. There was no way that a six year old boy could deduct like Conan could.<p>

Just when she was about to finally confront him, her father had left just ten minutes ago and she had waited to not have him return over something he had forgotten, the bell rang. She sighed, another disruption. Well, she could deal with it quickly. And in case this was something Conan had arranged to distract her from her suspicions, it wouldn't work. So she went to open the door and she wasn't really surprised to find Harry there. Probably he was in on the scam.

"Oh, hello Ran. How are you?" Harry asked smiling.

"I'm well, Harry, and you?" She asked politely.

"I'm well too, thank you. Say, I wanted to ask if you knew some good recipes for tea that help getting a raw throat get better that don't taste horribly bitter," Harry asked.

"Huh? What do you need such a tea for?" Ran asked confused. "You don't sound as if you would need it. Is your uncle ill?"

"No, it's him who needs the tea," Harry said, pointing behind him.

Ran looked and was shocked to see Shinichi standing there, waving at her with an embarrassed smile.

"Hey, Ran, long time no see," Shinichi said with a low and hoarse voice.

Ran didn't understand. How could Shinichi be here and still be Conan? And that while Harry was there. She had suspected that if Shinichi really feared being revealed, he would ask Harry to take his position to fool her, but Harry was here as well.

"Shinichi?" Ran asked and couldn't stop herself touching his cheek and feel his temperature with her hand.

His skin felt completely normal, this wasn't a mask.

"The idiot couldn't refrain from presenting his deductions on a case he investigated even if the doctor had warned him to not talk too much, because it could happen that he lost his voice," Harry sighed. "As the only tea that helps that I know of is really bitter, I thought you, with having to look after your Dad all the time, might know something else, Ran."

"Uh, well, yes, I know one that my Mum always gave me when I had a cold, she said to prevent that it became worse and that it helped soothe my throat too. But it's only sold at one apothecary here in Beika," Ran informed Harry.

"That's great!" Harry exclaimed and Shinichi smiled at her. "Can you take us there?"

"Uhm, sure. Just let me get a pullover," Ran said.

When she was out of the room, Conan looked at his double and then it hit him. Harry must have called Kaito. After all, Kaito and Shinichi could pass for twins and would if they had the same hair style. And the ploy with the raw throat would prevent that Kaito had to answer too many questions from Ran. Not to mention that any of the three could take the position of one of the others after they had exchanged memories of their life in a pensieve. And Kaito was a master of taking the position of others.

* * *

><p>The group soon reached the apothecary and Ran asked for the brand of tea that she knew would help with sore throats. She still wondered how this could be. But from the few things that Shinichi had said, it really seemed to be him. And there was no mask on his face, which she also hadn't ruled out for any of his friends to use to impersonate him to distract her suspicions. Harry to her surprise then took out a thermos with hot water and Shinichi poured some of it over a few tea leaves in a cup.<p>

"You really were prepared?" Ran asked surprised.

"Of course. If you hadn't known a nicer brand of tea, Shinichi would have to make do with the one I had," Harry said and pulled out a package of tea from his inner pocket.

Ran nodded. That brand of tea was also known for helping with a cold, but didn't taste anywhere near as nice as the one she had recommended. She saw Shinichi drink the hot tea slowly after he had got the tea leaves out after a few minutes of letting the tea sit. They decided that using the nice day would be a good idea, as the only thing Shinichi had was the sore throat, and therefore they went to take a walk in the park. Ran talked to Shinichi about the things that had happened since she had seen him the last time and Shinichi gave a few short comments, not talking too much with his throat needing rest.

When a football flew towards them, Shinichi intercepted it by stopping it with his chest, performing a few tricks, before he kicked it back to the group of kids that had shot the ball in the first place. They waved at him and cheered for the tricks he had shown and Shinichi waved back.

Ran's doubts decreased even more after that. That had clearly been the same way Shinichi always behaved when he got a football close to him. And an imposter would have a hard time being as good as Shinichi at doing those tricks. You couldn't simply learn that quickly.

Conan was very relieved that Ran's suspicions seemed to be alleviated for now. Thank god that Kaito was great at all kinds of sports. He was probably the only one that could pull the ruse off successfully.

* * *

><p>Of course nothing could ever be simple. On the way back home, when they had just left the part, they came across a similar scene as the one that Conan, Ran and Sonoko had been in with the attempted kidnapping. It seemed that it weren't just two culprits, but a whole group. They watched from fifty metres away how a small boy was dragged into a white car and how it raced away with the boy and the couple that had kidnapped the boy.<p>

"Shit, Ran, call Inspector Megure! Shinichi, Conan, with me, that road doesn't have any crossroads until Yugan Street. We can cut the distance off through the park!" Harry commanded and the other two nodded.

They raced off through the park and Shinichi took a turn to the left. Harry took Conan to a corner where he couldn't be seen and he apparated them to the other side of the park. They couldn't waste time. Then Harry's mobile rang.

"Yes?" Harry answered.

"It's me. The car is on the same road and should be reaching your current position in about a minute," Kaito informed him. "I'm in the air above the street using a disillusionment charm."

"Good, keep an eye on them, Kaito. We have to free that boy without endangering him," Harry replied.

"Will do," Kaito agreed.

"Shinichi, do you have some of your transmitters on you?" Harry asked.

"Of course. But how are you going to mark the car?" Shinichi asked. "It would be too dangerous to try stopping the car before they reach their hideout. Kidnapping like that only makes sense if they plan to blackmail rich relatives."

"Kaito can tell us exactly when the car comes by and then I'll banish the transmitter onto the side of the car. Nobody will notice that. As they are stickers, there is a high probability that it'll work. After that we can use your glasses to follow the kidnappers to their hideout and have Kaito sneak in there to free the boy. We can meanwhile take out the kidnappers if there aren't too many. In any case we can inform the police of the location so that they can send backup," Harry pointed his plan out.

"And this while it was going so well with making Ran believe that I wasn't Shinichi," Shinichi sighed.

"Well, I think she bought that part already. Kaito was very convincing," Harry said.

"The car is about to pass your location," Kaito warned now.

Harry got ready and banished the sticker that Shinichi had given him onto the car. Thankfully the plan worked and it now stuck to the lower backdoor. The car continued racing away and the now sounding police sirens were too far away to stop them. Shinichi had managed to glimpse the number plate and wrote the number into his notebook.

"Now we can return to Ran and give the police the information we have. It isn't much, but once we could follow the kidnappers, we should be able to do more," Shinichi said.

* * *

><p>Kaito returned to the group before they met with the police. Inspector Megure was very happy to see both of his favourite high school detectives together again.<p>

"Shinichi and Harrison, that's a pleasure. I haven't seen you for a while, Shinichi, it's good to see you're well," Megure said.

"Thank you, Inspector," Shinichi rasped.

"Oh, did you catch a cold?" Megure asked concerned.

"Yes, and of course he couldn't stop himself from presenting his deductions even if the doctor told him to not talk too much. Well, this is the result. Thankfully Ran knew a brand of tea that helps with sore throats and doesn't taste bad," Harry explained. "That's why we were out here. We first went to buy the tea and then decided to take a walk in the park."

"I see. Do you have any information on the kidnappers?" Megure asked.

"Not much, but Conan wrote the number plate down like he did with the attempted kidnapping of Sonoko Suzuki. I suspect that a gang is after children from rich families to demand ransom. The culprit was a woman, who wore a blue hat that hid her features somewhat from a distance. She also wore a blue dress that matched the hat. Her accomplice was a man wearing blue jeans and a red shirt. I think he had black hair. When the two were next to the boy and his mother, the man pushed the mother aside and the woman grabbed the boy. They jumped into the car through the open door and then drove away. It didn't take longer than a few seconds," Harry described.

"That's true," Ran spoke up now. "The mother also didn't see much of the couple. They were too fast and had their backs turned to her when she looked up again."

The police then questioned the mother if she knew anybody who would try kidnapping her son, but she didn't. Her husband was a successful businessman, but they hadn't got any kinds of threats.

"I managed to throw a transmitter at the car. We will be able to follow the kidnappers from a safe distance. Once they reach their hideout, we can attempt to save the boy," Harry then informed the inspector.

"Good work," the inspector praised. "How can we follow the signal?"

Conan handed over his glasses.

"If you press the right side of my glasses, you get a radar activated. The Professor made these for me, in case my friends and I got involved into a case again. He thought it would be safer if I could find them in an emergency," Conan said.

"Impressive, even if I don't like that you kids get into those situations. I know better than to admonish you for making the best out of that. You were after all, even worse when you were a child, Shinichi," he addressed the teenager, who shrugged his shoulders.

Any long comment would have blown his sore throat excuse.

* * *

><p>With the help of Conan's glasses the police easily managed to find the hiding place. The problem was getting inside. That was where Kaito came in. He told the police that he had a plan, but needed to get a few things for it, then he left. Without needing any magical tricks, he managed to sneak into the place and find the boy. But he wasn't the only one there. Two other children were also there, all three of them looked frightened. Kaito had simply used the fact that there were lots of shadows around to keep hidden. When a guard came around to bring the children some food, he got the drop on him and stored him away, deeply sleeping thanks to some chloroform. Kaito quickly created a mask to imitate his face and then took away the keys from his now prisoner. To be sure he gagged and tied him up.<p>

Then he went to get the children. He pretended to move them to another room and warned them to be quiet or he would have to hurt them. Kaito didn't like that, but the charade was necessary in case there were cameras around and he couldn't keep three small children silent otherwise and still get them out of here. He needed twenty minutes to get out of the place, but he managed without triggering any kind of alarm. He managed to deceive another guard by telling him that the boss wanted to see the kids for some reason. Finally they were out of the house and Kaito stole one of the cars. Thankfully the guy he had taken the keys for the room from, also had some keys for the cars that were around. He put the children on the back seat and drove towards the position where the police were waiting.

The look on Inspector Megure's face was priceless when he delivered the three children safe and sound.

"Who are you?" Megure asked surprised. "We're really grateful for your help, but we would really like to know your name."

Kaito laughed and took off his mask, reappearing in his white outfit.

"Kaito Kid?" Megure exclaimed shocked.

"Hello, Inspector Megure, it's nice to meet you for a change," Kaito declared. "Normally I only get to meet your colleague Inspector Nakamori."

"How did you know about the case? And why did you help us?" Megure asked.

"Well, I was actually just scouting around for my next heist, when I saw Black, Kudo and Edogawa sprint through the park and decided to follow them. I was lucky to be able to send Kudo to sleep, when he separated from the other two to take over his place. I might be a thief, but kidnapping is a crime I don't condone. So I decided to help out after hearing what Black and Edogawa had managed to do. I'm after all a master in sneaking into places and getting things out of there unnoticed. I'll take my leave then. You should find Kudo sleeping behind some bushes in the park. From the dose of chloroform I used, he should wake up in an hour or so," Kaito declared.

"Okay, while I don't like that you sent my best friend sleeping, I'll overlook it this time, as you really helped us, Kid. I won't stop you from leaving. But next time, I'll stop you during your heist," Harry countered.

"Thanks, Hawk. I'm looking forward to compete with your mind once again, good bye," Kaito said and thanks to a smoke bomb was gone before the police could do anything.

"Urgh, well, no sense in hunting him now and I really think this time we can temper justice with mercy. He did help us out massively. Let's arrest the ones in the hideout!" Megure ordered and the policemen closed in on the place.

It didn't take long. After an hour all members of the kidnapping gang were arrested. During the interrogation they confessed that they had planned to use the children of rich people that were well-known as ransom and get high amounts of money. They would the leave all children in the hideout and tell the parents where they were two days later. In the chaos of the police trying to find them there and collect clues, they would have already left the country. The money would have been transferred to a dummy account from which an accomplice would have done another transfer to another bank in Saudi Arabia from which they could have withdrawn the money easily. Nobody would have been able to follow the money after that and money laundering alarms would have been circumvented by their hacker who was tasked with the transfers.

It would probably have worked as well.

* * *

><p>That evening Ran, Conan, Shinichi and Harry walked back to the detective agency. They had all given their statements. While this time the role of Harry and Shinichi, officially that was, had been very small, they still got commended for their part. Inspector Megure even told them that if they ever wanted to join the police, he would get them into the academy for sure. They told him that they would consider it after graduating from high school. Ran was worried about Shinichi lying in the park for hours, sleeping, but he assured her that he was alright. He had taken another cup of the tea and his voice was recovering, even if he was still hoarse.<p>

When they reached the detective agency, Harry and Shinichi wished Ran and Conan a good night and then left to return home themselves.

Conan was very relieved that the whole act had been bought by Ran and that she didn't look at him strangely anymore. For now. He knew that in the future he would have to be more careful again. He couldn't afford that she found out what was really going on. It would be too dangerous for her.

* * *

><p><strong>And cut. Hope you liked the chapter. Till next time (which will hopefully be sooner than this time).<strong>


	25. Take Over and Counters

**Hi everbody. Sorry for the long wait for the next chapter. Now it's done and I hope you enjoy it. Happy reading.**

* * *

><p><strong>Take Over and Counters<strong>

Tonks led the infiltration groups of Freedom and Liberty into the depths of the Ministry. They had easily managed to find the entrance to the secret tunnel and were now passing through some really dirty paths. It was clear that this tunnel had been forgotten for a long time. All the better for them. The team counted six persons. Fred and George Weasley, who were going to rig a few offices of identified Death Eaters with their bugging operation, then Padma Patil and Susan Bones, who would be setting up wards around the offices of the people they wanted to protect, if the Death Eaters went for a violent takeover, and Kingsley Shacklebolt and her.

They would be making sure to collect any information that they could find. It was Sunday night at one in the morning, there would be nobody at the Ministry at that time, which was exactly why they had chosen this time. Not even the most desperate workaholic would be her at the night from Saturday to Sunday. In fact there was only one floo even open at this time. And that one would simply trigger and automatic alarm to the auror on call. Which incidentally were her and Kingsley for tonight. They had made sure of that.

The aurors had got orders to arrange the schedule for the emergency contact among themselves and they had chosen the nights they were on call themselves. This night was unpopular, as with the return of Voldemort and the death of Dumbledore it wasn't the same sure uneventful night it had been for years anymore. And few wanted to be on call during the night on the weekend. Most preferred it being their turn over the week.

They reached the hidden panel that allowed entry to the third floor of the Ministry of Magic after walking for ten minutes. They had agreed to keep the use of magic as low as possible, as nobody could say if there were detectors somewhere that would call people here that they didn't want to find out. The areas where they were sure about use of magic not being noticed were the offices of the people in the Ministry. There was simply too much active magic from sensors for underage magic, all the relicts in the Department of Mysteries, anything that had been confiscated by the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol and so on.

As soon as they were all inside, they separated to get their jobs done. They only had this night to act. They suspected that tomorrow, when the Weasley wedding would be held at Hogwarts, rumours were that the Weasleys had decided to change locations for protection with permission of McGonagall, something would happen and they didn't plan to be unprepared.

* * *

><p>In the morning the Weasleys and the guests that had arrived to see the wedding of Bill and Fleur the day before were hustling and bustling around. Ever since the betrayal of Harry Potter had been found out by the students, who had in turn told their parents and those their friends and acquaintances, the star of that once 'light' family had fallen massively. The list of guests was fairly small. Not many wanted to attend. There were some relatives of both Bill and Fleur of course and the remainder of Dumbledore's stout supporters.<p>

Those former members of the Order of the Phoenix that had deserted the fight, as the persons at Hogwarts considered it, wouldn't be caught dead at this wedding. There hadn't been much success on the horcrux front, much to their collective dismay. They had searched any place that Dumbledore had connected to Tom Riddle, but they hadn't found anything. The orphanage was a bust, nobody could imagine that anything could ever be hidden at Hogwarts without Dumbledore knowing about it and while they suspected that there could be something hidden at a Death Eater's home, they didn't have any way to get there.

It wasn't what they had expected. They had assumed that with all the information they had about Voldemort's life from the very beginning, and even before that about his parents, they would easily be able to put together the clues of where the horcruxes could be hidden. They really wanted to show all those that had mocked them and turned away from them and the great plans of Dumbledore that they were the ones that were wrong. They wanted the lime light.

Well, today at least some glamour was theirs. A wedding at Hogwarts simply would be something people would talk about.

The wedding itself was scheduled for one in the afternoon and after that would be a grand reception. Molly Weasley ran around to make sure that everything was perfect, Fleur tried to calm her nerves and the guests were directed to their seats by the younger Weasleys. The one officiating had demanded a larger fee than normal, because it was well-known that this group was against You-Know-Who and on his hit-list, which meant a higher risk for him, but he had in the end agreed to perform the wedding ceremony and then leave immediately after. Thankfully Bill could pay the fee.

The place for the wedding ceremony would be the Great Hall, as it was the place best suited. They had thought about holding it out on the grounds, but considering security issues, they had in the end chosen the inside of the castle and there only the Great Hall offered the space to hold both the ceremony and the reception.

* * *

><p>When the time for the ceremony came, Bill was waiting at the front of the Hall, where normally the head table was located, standing next to Charlie, who was his best man. Some of Fleur's cousins were bridesmaids next to her sister Gabrielle and Ginny Weasley. All of them wore golden dresses and had bouquets of red and yellow flowers with them. All the guests, including Fred and George, who had called a truce to attend their oldest brother's wedding, even if he had stayed loyal to Dumbledore's side. They really wondered, but he said that even if some things he did hadn't been completely right, he had to have had his reasons for his actions. Probably they were needed to defeat You-Know-Who.<p>

The twins could only shake their heads at that much blind faith in a MOB, but there was nothing they could say to convince the ones that grew up always hearing the legend of the great and infallible Albus Dumbledore and weren't used to defy authority regularly, like the twins had done basically all their lives. It wasn't in their nature to simply follow the ones in authority. It was much too boring. And later on that kind of thinking had allowed them to see beneath the kind grandfather persona that the MOB had cultivated for himself. In their eyes actions spoke louder than words.

Harry had saved Ginny's life in 1993, getting her out of the Chamber of Secrets. He had saved their father's life in 1995, getting the warning about the snake's attack to Dumbledore, so that somebody could find and get him medical help, and those two incidents far outweighed a misty legend of an old man for them. It was a damn shame that most of their family members didn't possess any kind of honour. They had agreed to attend the wedding, but they would keep away from their parents and siblings, except to give Fleur and Bill their present. Then they would leave again. While the food at the party would undoubtedly be great, they didn't want to risk there being potions in the food to control people.

The watched to where Hermione and Ron, the worst kind of traitors of Harry, sat. They were obviously together now from how they held themselves. From a few spies that kept an eye on the homes of the Dumbledore worshippers, they knew that Hermione had sent her parents out of the country thanks to obliviating her existence from their minds. They had trouble believing that she was capable of doing that, but then again, she had been capable of pretending to be Harry's best friend. If the obliviations was really because she wanted to keep them safe, or because she simply wanted them out of the way, nobody could really say, except her. But honestly, the twins didn't want to stay in company of all these bastards for longer than necessary.

* * *

><p>Fred and George looked at the lynx patronus that they knew belonged to Kingsley.<p>

"The Ministry has fallen. The Minister is dead. While the traitors don't really deserve the warning, there are innocents among the wedding guests. They are on their way," spoke Kingsley's deep voice.

It had only been twenty minutes since the ceremony had ended and Fred and George had been on the way out of the castle to get away before their parents could try to do anything, like attempting, again, to see their side of things. But now they needed to get control over this situation and get the innocents to safety. They knew that with the Ministry in the hands of Voldemort it was only a question of time until a full out assault on the castle would take place. Fred fired a noise spell into the air, which quieted the guests that ran around in panic.

"Alright, everybody listen," George said, amplifying his voice with the sonorus charm, "The situation is dire, but not hopeless. Right now we need to act reasonably and get everybody that is incapable of defending himself to a safe location. The first targets of the Death Eaters and their chief in command, we really recommend stopping using the name now, if you ever did, as with the Ministry in their hands, you can bet that a taboo will be placed on the name to capture those that dare defying them, will be his opponents and those they consider filth."

"And face it, Defence education here has been lousy, except for the great teachings of Remus Lupin and Harry Potter of course," Fred added, also using the charm now, "So the chance of many being able to use the spells we need in battle is low. So, anybody who is muggleborn, has close muggleborn friends or creature heritage, should quickly get out of the country and warn those that also fall under that category. Squibs will probably follow, as they are seen as a shame upon proud pureblood families, but they might find a way to twist something to use that fact as well."

"The organisations Freedom and Liberty have already arranged to have those transports set up. Gather your friends and family to be safe until we can take back the country. For those that don't want to leave, lay low and set up all kinds of protection around your homes and keep your families safe. I doubt that Hogwarts will stay out of their grasp, as You-Know-Who desperately wants the school, as he sees it as his birth right as the heir of Slytherin. If you can fight and don't want to simply sit around, doing nothing worthwhile, Freedom and Liberty are always open for new recruits," George continued, "Contact to the respective leaders can be made through yours truly."

"You won't be fighting against them, I forbid it!" Molly Weasley screeched.

"You have no control over us anymore," George harshly said, "After what you pulled with Harry, who had done more for our family than Dumbledore ever did, saving both Ginny and Dad, you have no right to demand anything from us. Your way of doing things simply doesn't work. It will only lead to people dying. We are members of Freedom and we won't simply let a bunch of bastards take over our world, just because there are too many with weak stomachs that refuse to see the truth that with some people you simply can't let them live. Killing somebody in self-defence or executing an irredeemable murderer, who would kill again without any remorse if he had the chance, isn't dark. It's just common sense. Think of what happened to the Longbottoms. Would you leave the Lestranges alive if you had them in front of your wands? Or Lucius Malfoy? Dolohov? You're deceiving yourself if you think you could peacefully live under their rule. No, the only way to survive is getting them out of the way."

Some of the guests nodded and stepped forward, asking to be allowed to join Freedom, as they wouldn't allow that their world was taken over. Fred and George nodded and gave then information about a safe meeting point where they would be tested for hidden agendas, a standard security procedure, simply because nobody wanted to have a spy like Pettigrew in their ranks, and then they would be included in the fights and undercover operations. Of course the twins set up a muffliato charm to prevent that anybody could listen in.

"Headmistress, there are Death Eaters at the gates, trying to overcome the wards," Hagrid shouted while running into the Great Hall.

"Okay, nobody panics. We can get you out of here easily without the Death Eaters having a chance to stop us. Nobody knows the secret passages of the school better than Fred and I," George announced, "They might be able to get the school under their control, but they won't harm anybody here that isn't ready to fight and right now it would be a really bad time for a fight. We have too many civilians here and you fight wars with trained soldiers. Follow me. Professor McGonagall, if there are any advanced defence mechanisms of the castle, you should activate them now, otherwise they won't do you much good in the future."

Quickly a large group followed the twins and was led out of the school through a passage that ended at the lower part of the cliff on which Hogwarts towered over the Black Lake. It was one known to Filch, therefore the twins weren't giving up any knowledge that could have been an advantage once they would act against the Death Eaters to finally deal with them once and for all.

* * *

><p>Fred and George reached the sixth floor where they tapped six stones next to a suit of armour in a pattern that had the same rhythm as a popular nursery rhyme, which had been passed down since the time of the founders. Once they tapped the sixth stone for the third time, the walls shifted to the side and revealed a passage that allowed two people to walk next to each other.<p>

"Now, the passage is quite long, so please keep your calm. Light your wands for light, as the torch holders that are on the walls haven't been filled for ever since we knew about this passage. We think it might have been an emergency escape route from the upper floors in the times of the founders," Fred explained, "Parents are to keep their children close to them. There is nothing dangerous in this passage, but it is very dark and dirty. I also wouldn't rule out infestations of spiders and mice."

The group nodded and while Fred went ahead, George waited until the last person was inside and sealed the passage behind him. No need to give anybody an easy way to follow them. Occasionally a child spoke up, asking how long it would take until they were out, but otherwise the group stayed calm. It took about twenty five minutes for them to reach the end of the passage. It wasn't really hard to see why, as the passage led them through the whole cliff and down to the closest point to Hogsmeade. When they reached the end, George went to the front of the group.

"When we open the exit, please stay silent. Apparate to your homes and take the precautions we told you about. And don't give up hope, the Death Eaters are also only human. We will beat them, even if we need a bit more time," George told them.

"Thank you for getting us out there," one woman said gratefully.

"You're welcome," Fred replied, and opened a hidden door into a large room that was still inside the cliff, "You can apparate from inside here, as we passed the wards of Hogwarts that prevent apparition when we went through the door. Seemingly the founders of Hogwarts took precautions to avoid that enemies could simply apparate into one of their escape routes. You can only enter from this side, if you know how to do it, which really few people do. I think the headmistress of Hogwarts knows, but for example Filch only knows how to get out of the school to this place, but has no clue how to open the other entrance. For security reasons, we won't tell you either. But you're safe to apparate from here without anybody knowing and attacking you."

The adults among the group nodded and soon there were cracks of apparition all over the place, telling them that at least the ones not prepared to fight were now somewhere safer. It was doubtful that anywhere in Great Britain would be safe for the next few months, until they could deal with the problem once and for all. Well, they had prepared to go underground. Their store would be put under a fidelius charm in ten minutes, as soon as they were there in fact, so that the Death Eaters couldn't find it. And they couldn't afford to burn down all of Diagon Alley. Just to find two dissidents. They wanted to rule after all, and ruling a world of rubble wouldn't do them any good and they also used the services of the shops in the alley.

* * *

><p>Freedom and Liberty were holding a meeting at their secret meeting place. It had been three days since the fall of the Ministry and thankfully the warnings to all muggleborns had gone out in time to get most of them out of the country already. The last two days flights on flying carpets had been arranged by the Patils, train tickets for the train to Paris through the Chunnel had been bought en masse and given out to those that couldn't afford to simply buy them and their contacts in France had been informed to collect those that didn't have a place to stay.<p>

Thankfully Madame Maxime was very helpful with arranging safe houses in France through her network as the headmistress of Beauxbatons. Now the one thing to do was helping those that didn't get out so far, either because they didn't want to run away or because they didn't want to leave their muggle families behind, and to prepare for some long months.

"Any word from Black and Potter?" Moody asked.

"Not since their last letter. They're busy preparing, but as always no details," Remus answered.

"They wouldn't by any chance be able to come earlier?" Kingsley asked.

"No, they were quite sure that they wouldn't be able to come before October. We will simply have to hold out until then. It wouldn't help us at all if they came and then weren't ready for the fight. If Harry goes into the open again, he needs to be seen as powerful enough to really give You-Know-Who trouble," Neville commented, "We just need to be ready to stand at his side then."

"Okay, then let's discuss the next operation," Moody said in a strict tone, "From what the Prophet reported, more rubbish than usual, they haven't wasted any time. The new Minister being Pius Thicknesse, who is under the imperius curse, gives them the appearance of being legal and we can be sure that those that aren't too bright, which sadly are most witches and wizards in this country, won't really see what's going on until it's too late. There might be suspicions, but nobody will definitely come out and say it. We will need somebody to keep watch over our spying equipment to not overlook any planned raids on houses of opponents of Riddle. While the overheard information will be written down by an auto dicta quill, we still need to read the notes regularly and put them into categories. Otherwise we won't have any advantages from that."

"True. We can set up a schedule and check on them every two hours. We might not be able to react in time to planned attacks all the time, but I actually doubt that many of them would be discussed at the Ministry. We would need to place spy gear at the manors of known Death Eaters like Malfoy, Nott and so on to actually get anywhere," Tonks commented.

"Yes, but getting in there is impossible," Kingsley commented.

"No, it isn't," Luna spoke up, surprising many.

"And how would you do that?" Moody asked curiously, as this young woman saw things a lot differently than them and often pointed out things that they would overlook.

"Asking a house elf to do it of course. If a house elf gets the order to do something by his master, he will do it. No questions asked. And there is Dobby, who is Harry's friend and knows Malfoy Manor better than anybody, because he once was a Malfoy house elf," Luna pointed out.

"Of course, you're right," Neville exclaimed, "And I know that Dobby would do it readily. After all, the information we get that way would help in the fight against Riddle and therefore be to Harry's advantage."

"How can we contact him?" Moody asked impressed with the idea.

"He has been working at the Hog's Head since he left Hogwarts," Luna answered.

"How do you know?" Parvati asked curiously.

"Oh, I met him there when Daddy and I went to interview Aberforth Dumbledore about the sins his brother Albus committed in life. Aberforth didn't like Albus very much. I think he blames him for the death of their sister Ariana when Albus wanted to play conqueror with Grindelwald," Luna pointed out.

"Dumbledore was friends with Grindelwald?" Fred asked surprised.

"Didn't he defeat him in that famous duel?" George continued.

"That was on Dumbledore's chocolate frog card after all," they both ended.

"Oh, when I was little, I got to talk to Mrs Bagshot sometimes when Daddy was working in Godric's Hollow. There is a colony of red-striped hoozbumbles that has been reported to live around there and he wanted to find some for an article in the Quibbler. Mrs Bagshot knew wonderful stories and one of them, which she told me when I was I think eight years old, was of her nephew Gellert and his friend Albus, who were very curious about the Deathly Hallows and wanted to collect them. She showed me a number of photos in which they were both young. Well, in the end they had an arguments with Aberforth, who was against them going off, as Ariana was too fragile for it, poor girl had a delicate health, which prevented that she went to Hogwarts, and spells flew. In the end Ariana, who had somehow tried to stop the fight, was dead and Aberforth blamed his brother ever since then. He really loved his little sister," Luna told them.

"What are the Deathly Hallows?" Padma asked.

"The three gifts that Death gave the Peverell brothers according to the stories that were collected by Beedle the Bard. Though Daddy thinks that it also might be that it was just a rumour to hide that they were necromancers. Not very respectable business after all," Luna explained.

"You mean the story of the three brothers that cheated death and whom he tricked by offering them gifts of their choosing, only to later collect all three brother's souls, two quickly and one at the end of a long life?" Tonks asked.

"Yes, that's the one. Daddy also wants to find them. But he's too busy with replicating the lost diadem of Ravenclaw. So he only wears his Deathly Hallows pendent when he goes out," Luna nodded.

"What kind of pendent is that?" Remus asked.

Luna took a piece of parchment and a quill and started drawing. First was a horizontal line.

"The wand of Destiny, also called the Elder Wand, the Deathstick and many other names," Luna commented and then drew a triangle around the line with the tip of one side being at the tip of the wand, "The Cloak of Invisibility," She continued and finished with a circle around the other two, "The Stone of Resurrection."

"I've seen that symbol before. Grindelwald actually used it as his when he was trying to take over Europe in the thirties and forties," Moody realised.

"Yes, he stole it from the story, being obsessed with the power of the Hallows, as supposedly they would make the one to collect them all the Master of Death," Luna confirmed, "I think especially the Elder Wand would be tempting for a dark wizard like him. Even if I would like the stone much better. You could learn so many things from the dead. Of course you would have to let them return to their world after a while, you wouldn't want to hurt them after all, but it would be fascinating."

The others nodded, each with their own ideas of which Hallow they would like best.

"So, who's going to ask Dobby if he could help us and do we have more house elves that could help us with bugging other manors?" Remus asked.

"I can ask Dobby," Luna offered, "Nobody would wonder why I was there, after all, Daddy and I go and visit the village regularly and right now the hostile takeover hasn't been announced yet."

"I'm coming with you," Neville declared.

"That would be very nice, Neville, thank you," Luna accepted smiling.

It was agreed that they would go after the meeting to get things done as soon as possible. And while they were busy in Hogsmeade, a group of ten would sneak into a supply point of the Death Eaters, steal everything useful and then blow it up. They wouldn't risk anything if the place was too well guarded, but normally there should at most be two guards. With a fast hit and run operation there should be very little danger.

* * *

><p>Neville apparated him and Luna to an alley behind the Hog's Head. While it should still be safe to come here during the day, there was no reason to tempt fate. They knocked at the back door of the pub and were let inside after two minutes of waiting.<p>

"Now that's a surprise. Little Luna," the old man that resembled Professor Dumbledore greatly commented smiling.

"Hi, Abe, how are you doing?" Luna asked kindly.

"Not too bad. But I think that's about to change. Dark characters have been sneaking around here since the disturbed Weasley wedding at Hogwarts. I hope you aren't involved in anything dangerous," Aberforth asked.

"Nothing more than normally," Luna replied happily, "This is Neville, my friend. We've come to ask Dobby for a favour."

"Dobby? Well, you know where the kitchen is. The little elf is a blessing. For just one galleon a month he works the same as three normal employees, which I would have had to pay ten times that at least. Hope you aren't going to entice him away," Aberforth commented.

"No, don't worry. He will still be able to work here. It's just something that shouldn't take very long. After all, house elves are incredibly good t staying hidden if they want to," Luna assured him.

Aberforth nodded and Luna took Neville's hand to lead him into the kitchen. They found the house elf busy with coordinating the dishes being washed, vegetables and meat being cut, the floor being mobbed, three pans frying different dishes and throwing them into the air to turn them and sorting notes about jobs all at the same time.

"Hello, Dobby," Luna greeted him.

"Miss Luna," Dobby cried out delightedly, "And Mr Longybottom."

"Hello Dobby, it's nice to see you again," Luna said.

"Oh, Miss Luna is such a nice witch. Being happy to see Dobby," Dobby exclaimed happily, "Would you like some tea?"

"That would be lovely, Dobby," Luna agreed and soon they were sitting on chairs while Dobby still made sure that all his other activities were going properly.

"What can Dobby do for you?" Dobby asked.

"Well, we need your abilities as a house elf, especially as you were the Malfoy house elf. You see, the Death Eaters have taken over the Ministry and it's only a question of time until Hogwarts will fall. For now the wards held up to the attack a few days ago, even if barely. We don't want that they stay in power, but to make good plans to counter them, we need reliable information. The Weasley twins have developed a small device that can listen into conversations spoken around it, as long as the ones talking aren't further away than fifteen metres. Which is already incredible. We wanted to ask you, if you would be willing to place such listening devices not only at Malfoy Manor, in every place that is needed so that we will be able to listen to all the plans made there, but also see if you, or any other house elf friend you have, could get them into the other Death Eaters' homes," Luna explained.

"It would not only help us, but once Harry returns, he would also profit from the information that we could collect and prepare for him," Neville added.

"Oh, Dobby loves to help out," Dobby said eagerly, "And Dobby knows two other elves that can help. They lost their families to nasty Death Eaters two weeks ago and don't like them at all. They would be happy to help getting back at them. Especially to help the great Harry Potter."

"That's fantastic, Dobby, thank you so much," Neville said happily.

"Yes, it's very nice of you to offer your help. It will be invaluable," Luna nodded.

Dobby beamed at them and they left after also getting some delicious chocolate chip cookies from the eager house elf. Neville also left Aberforth a way to contact Freedom, either to relay information or to get away if he was targeted. Aberforth doubted that the second one would be necessary, but took it anyway. And he said he would see what he could tell them. He didn't like having Death Eaters in power any more than others. Bad for business. Even the crooks that frequented his pub were scared of them. And that meant less sold ale and the like.

* * *

><p>Okay, that was the chapter, until next time.<p> 


	26. Summer Break Starts

**Summer Break Starts**

Conan sat in class, once again pretending to be a normal first-year student. Thankfully Harry had charmed his textbooks to appear to be the same ones that the other children in his class used, but they really were about magic. They were keyed to only his magical signature, which meant that nobody but him would be able to read them. He pretended to do silent reading most of the time in class, but he actually increased his knowledge of magic. Ai was doing something similar, as Harry had also charmed her books the same way as he had done for Conan on her request. Though most of her books dealt with the reactions of certain magical plants with other, non-magical, plants. Harry and Shiho were working furiously on an antidote to the poison that they had both taken.

Thankfully there was only today left before the summer break would start. They had planned to use all that time to concentrate on their work and hopefully find a way to counter the poison. The sooner they had a workable antidote, the better they could coordinate the training. Conan knew that he had to practice his magical core as much as possible and the time to do so was running out. Therefore he normally excused himself from activities with the children to get his training done. He still set two afternoons each week aside for them, so that they wouldn't be too angry with him. After all, he didn't want rumours about a child that was always busy spreading, especially not when that child was regularly seen around crime scenes in company of Sleeping Kogoro or the Hawk. That would definitely gain too much attention.

Finally the bell rang for the class to be over, and the children were allowed to go home. Conan had told his friends that Harry wanted to take him onto a trip, which meant that he wouldn't be around for the remainder of August. He would be back at the beginning of September. Four weeks of constant training should take care of most parts of his magical training. He was nearly done with the fifth-year spells now. Once he had managed to get the basics down, and thanks to Harry being an incredibly good teacher, he had breezed through the material. They had practiced one spell after the other, which was made possible as they basically ignored all the non-wanded subjects for now. Conan could catch up in those areas once he had his teenager body back. Practicing and exercising his core by doing it was more important.

And in case they needed the knowledge about plants, potions and runes or something like that, Harry and Shiho were able to cover them. Not to mention that Sirius was also there to help them out.

"It's really a shame that you're going to be away all of August, Conan," Ayumi complained.

"Well, I'm looking forward to being on a trip with Harry and Sirius," Conan replied, "They told me that the place they had chosen for our vacation was really great."

"Yeah, maybe, but we'll miss you," Ayumi said.

"I'll make sure to send you a postcard from wherever we are going to stay," Conan promised.

"You better do, or we'll punish you when you come back," Genta threatened.

Conan sweat dropped and nodded.

"Don't worry, I'll remember it," Conan stated.

"What about you, Ai?" Mitsuhiko asked.

"I'm going to accompany the Professor to a meeting for scientists. I'm sure it will be really interesting. And then we plan to spend some time at a beach. We haven't decided which one though, so I guess that I'll be gone for a while as well. Didn't your parents plan to travel to Hokkaido for a week or two as well, Mitsuhiko?" Ai asked.

"Yes. At the end of the month," Mitsuhiko confirmed.

"Oh man, it's too bad that the Detective Boys won't be able to use the time to solve more cases with us all being in different places for the summer," Genta whined.

"I'm sure once we're all back, there will be enough cases again," Ayumi tried to cheer Genta up again.

Genta just nodded moodily. Ai and Conan didn't comment on that. Once they had their adult bodies back, they wouldn't be able to accompany the children for their little cases anymore, but they both planned to still keep in contact with them. Officially the three knew that it could happen that Ai and Conan had to move back to their parents. But they clearly didn't want to think about it.

* * *

><p>Harry looked over his preparations for the trip that he and Sirius had planned. Sirius had two weeks off from work to help with the training of both Shinichi and Harry. After that Harry would take over the training full time. One month was a lot of time to get things done, especially as the local Department of Mysteries had supplied them with a time compression chamber, which would allow them to triple the training time they had. Meaning that the one month they had in real time would give them three months. While in that chamber, they would practice all kinds of battle spells, rapid casting and Harry would perfect his silent casting, while adding some wandless casting as well. For Shinichi the casting in a low voice would have to suffice.<p>

He was after all still catching up to Harry and it was already amazing how fast he had managed to get through the material that they covered. Under the time restriction that they had it was already incredible how far he had managed to come. Shiho would stay at a laboratory of the department and work with some of the best potions masters that the unspeakables had in their ranks. Her sister was now ready to leave the hospital and would live together with her in a flat under the protection of the Japanese Ministry. She had been given a glamour amulet that would hide her features if she went outside.

They would have to keep a low profile if they did, but they hoped that they could soon have more freedom again. Akemi had considered contacting her boyfriend, Dai Moroboshi, as he was an FBI agent who had once infiltrated the organisation, but Shiho was against that idea. It would only be an option once they were ready to really take out the organisation. And that would be a while in the future. Therefore Akemi had pushed contacting him back, even if she missed him. Her and her sister's safety was the most important thing right now. The organisation had already betrayed both of them and would not hesitate to kill them, should they find out that they were both still alive.

Once Harry was content that he had everything they would need, he closed the trunk in which all of his things were placed and put it next to the flat's door. He knew that Shinichi would come over soon, after he had said goodbye to the Moris, who had been informed about the 'trip' that they were planning. Kogoro was all for not having Conan around for a while, while Ran had given Harry a list what to look out for while looking after a young child. Harry had sat through her lecture with a mask firmly on his face. If Ran only knew. But that wouldn't end well for Shinichi, therefore it was better she never found out that Conan and Shinichi were one and the same.

* * *

><p>The Department of Mysteries was a curious place. That held true for any country. While Harry and Shinichi had been here before, when Harry had got the horcrux from his scar removed, which made the scar fade away once it healed, now they were allowed to go deeper into it than before. The head of the department was happy to help them out, as he had heard enough about the reign of Voldemort to want to prevent him becoming the de facto ruler of England and then attempt to repeat the reign of terror that Grindelwald had caused in the 1930's and 40's.<p>

The whole world had been drawn into the world war that Grindelwald had started to cover up his actions among the muggles. And Voldemort was even worse than Grindelwald in how he killed ruthlessly. No, if there was a way to stop this idiocy early on, he would assist the ones that were meant to do the job in any way he could. And allowing them to use the time compression chamber of his department for a while would be a small contribution to that. And he was actually very interested in the research of Shiho Miyano, who had become a victim of the same poison that had de-aged Shinichi Kudo.

"The time chamber will give you three times the amount of time that passes on the outside, while you're in there. It's already stocked with food and drinks for three months. We have also placed about one hundred books on battle magic in there for you to work with. Practice dummies are in the duelling chamber in there and we have a stasis cupboard with the most common potions that can help treating injuries and the like. We also, for good measure, added ten books on healing charms for common injuries that can come up in a fight," the unspeakable informed the group.

"That's great, thank you very much," Harry appreciated the thoughtfulness.

"You're welcome. Once you're done with the problem in England, we would actually like to offer you jobs here, if you were interested," the unspeakable told them, "We have done some discrete research and your abilities in both magic and criminal investigations are remarkable, Mr Potter. And the speed with which Mr Kudo has managed to catch up on certain parts of using magic in just a few months is nothing short of a miracle."

"That certainly is a tempting offer. I'll have to think about it after we are done with Voldemort," Harry commented, not having expected something like this.

"The same holds true for me. But I think I would first need more time to learn all parts of magic to really decide," Shinichi stated.

"Of course. We didn't expect an immediate decision. Just take your time to think about it," the unspeakable assured them.

Then they reached the chamber where two hooded unspeakables were looking at a list of some kind.

"Ah, director, we're ready for the chamber to be used," one of them, a woman going by the voice, informed them.

"Very good. These are the three gentlemen that will work in the chamber for the next two weeks normal time. After that Mr Black has to go back to working on his normal job, but Messrs Potter and Kudo will continue for the rest of the month," he told them.

"Well, the fridge is filled for three months, next to the cupboards. They should be able to get by with the food easily. And with the runes on the fridge, even the milk won't spoil until they finish their training," the second unspeakable commented, this one was a man.

The head unspeakable nodded and led the group into the chamber after entering the code onto the number pad next to the door.

"I wish you good luck with your training. We'll see each other again once the time is up. If you need something urgently, you can send a message with the computer inside of the chamber. Thanks to the time difference, there is no way to have a mobile phone work properly. Written messages are the best way to keep in contact," he pointed out.

"We will keep that in mind," Sirius agreed and the three entered the chamber, eager to get this training done.

The inside of the chamber was like a specialised training area. They had one duelling room, one small laboratory with a stocked potions cabinet, a gym, a room with a pensieve and one room that could be turned into an obstacle course by activating different training runes. Next to that there were three small bedrooms, one combined kitchen and lounge room, and one bathroom for them to use.

"Well, let's not waste any time. We're going to get started on battle spells today, as you will need one or two days to get the basics of them down. After that the plan is to expand your spell repertoire and practice duelling against me until I have to leave. During the time you have to just the two of you, you can work on speed and silent casting," Sirius told the two, "Next to that the DOM here has supplied us with an ageing potion to give Shinichi his normal age back for about five hours on end. Once his core has grown as far as we can get it, he'll take it to get used to fighting at his real age. I don't know how fast Shiho can be with finishing the antidote, but we better have you ready by then. As soon as the antidote is ready, we need to relocate Conan without causing suspicion."

"Any plans on how to manage that part?" Shinichi asked.

"Well, Ran and Kogoro Mori have already met your 'mother' when your real parents and the Professor decided to play that trick on you to make you realise just how dangerous the situation you are in really is, Shinichi. We will ask her to give a repeat performance to have you leave without anybody being the wiser. Of course this time you will properly say goodbye to the kids and the Moris and Conan Edogawa will simply disappear. You can send a letter or postcard from time to time to show you didn't forget them, but after some time it's normal for a child to stop writing because other things become more interesting," Sirius answered.

"Makes sense and it isn't too far-fetched," Harry nodded.

Shinichi agreed as well. Nobody would suspect a thing if he went back to live with his parents after the time he had spent in Tokyo. And over time people would more or less forget about Conan. He might have to tell Ran after the organisation was brought down, though. She had the habit of holding onto bonds she had and with Conan it was a really close one. And he really didn't want to lie to her forever. But right now that was too dangerous.

"Okay, let's get the training started," Shinichi voiced.

The three males went to the duelling room and Sirius started teaching them battle spells, some of them unique and only known by the Blacks.

* * *

><p>"Keep your guard up, Harry!" Sirius barked while firing a cutting curse at his godson, quickly following it up with a bone breaker and a concussion curse.<p>

He wasn't pulling any punches and just refrained from using anything that could cause permanent harm or would last longer than five hours with treatment by highly potent potions, which they had stocked in the chamber. Harry meanwhile was keeping up a specialised shield charm, one that allowed him to mentally direct five floating smaller shield that would block any spell short of unforgivables. The difficulty was keeping up more than two of them at the same time and directing them to intercept any spell thrown at him. The spell was a Black specialty and the cause why they had been as feared in history as they had been.

The normal shield spell, _protego_, only allowed you to cast that spell, but no others while you kept it up. An opponent would certainly be able to batter the shield down with enough time to cast against you. The shield disc spell, _plurabutur_, only needed to be cast once and then could be kept up with just willpower and concentration while you could attack with other spells. Sirius had given Harry and Shinichi an impressive demonstration by letting them attack him together with any kind of spell that was part of the normal school curriculum up to seventh year. It was amazing what Sirius could do with the spell.

Harry and Shinichi were hard pressed against him, even if they had teamwork and the numerical advantage against Sirius. But with him being able to defend and attack at the same time, with ten shield racing around him with just a thought from him, intercepting any spell they could throw, Sirius had, after ten minutes of battling them at half strength, just to demonstrate how the spell didn't drain you too much in a duel if you had mastered it, like he certainly had done, disarmed them both and then hexed their hair pink and let it grow to waist length. He was still a prankster after all. They had only got their normal hair back the next day. It was unnecessary to say that both were eager to learn how to master the shield disc spell.

Harry now could conjure five of the normally invisible discs, which only got visible the moment when a spell impacted on them. They were able to stop spells and small debris. The Blacks were nothing but thorough in developing battle spells. Shinichi was at three discs, but felt he could soon get a fourth one up. And that was needed in battles with an opponent like Sirius, who freely admitted that he was only high auror level and could only stall Voldemort in a fight, back in the late seventies and early eighties.

Shinichi had just finished his training session with Sirius and was off to take care of his injuries. Nothing too bad, just some bruises and cuts this time. He was getting better at dodging what he couldn't shield against. Harry right now was trying to stop all of Sirius' spells with his discs and get some attacks back at Sirius. Finally, after ten minutes of intensive work, Sirius stopped the fight and let Harry drop his spell.

"Not too bad, but you have a lot of work to do before you can say you mastered the spell. I suggest you work with the stinging hex shooting balls that the unspeakables left here for us. Start out with three and then increase the number," Sirius told Harry.

"Yes, but not now. I need something to drink and some more bruise balm," Harry replied.

"A short break is okay," Sirius agreed.

Harry sighed in relief. He had known that Sirius was a powerful and smart wizard, but he had only learned just how powerful he truly was when they had started the training in the chamber two weeks ago now. Sirius had put Harry and Shinichi through the paces, first teaching them a high number of spells that they were now perfecting through practical work.

"Hey, Sirius, I think I got the lightning spiral down," Shinichi called from the spell practice room.

"That's great, Shinichi. You can show us after a short break for snacks and drinks," Sirius called back.

Soon the group of three sat in the small kitchen and lounge room and drank some fruit juice and snacked on vegetable sticks with cream cheese. Sirius had told them both that eating healthy snacks between the training parts would help their bodies with getting proper nutrients. As they had large meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner to take care of carbohydrates and proteins, they covered vitamins and minerals with the snacks over the day. The unspeakables had made sure that their supplies covered all areas.

And, despite that fact not being widely known, especially not in England, a healthy and strong body amplified your magic. Which explained why Sirius, who had used muggle means to train his body, was so powerful when he was younger. Ever since he had overheard some girls talking about how much they would like one of the older boys in Gryffindor, who were part of the Quidditch team and had to go through the working out crazy captain's exhausting training, to be their boyfriend, he had asked said boys what they did for training and had started to follow that example, roping James and Remus into the action as well. Peter the coward and lazy bum had ditched them then.

That had been in his second year, when he, early bloomer that he had been, had started noticing girls more. His success with girls when he had turned fourteen had spoken for itself. The girls loved his physique next to his natural good looks that came with being born into the Black family. Sirius and James had noticed that they could cast all the most powerful spells that were in their spell books for classes with more ease than before half a year into their physical training program and did some discreet research. Those that were on the house Quidditch teams or did another kind of sport to keep in shape were the ones that always were the ones either fastest to get a spell or to use the most powerful variant of it in the end.

It was a main reason why James and Sirius decided that they even had a chance to get the animagus transformation right, only being third years at the time they chose that path to help Remus out. Now Sirius had shared that knowledge with Harry and Shinichi and they exploited it to the fullest. Neither boy had any problem to eat healthy, as long as the food tasted good. Not to mention that Shinichi, being born to Japanese parents, was used to food that was a lot less greasy than the typical English fare. Harry certainly preferred any kind of food that wasn't like what the Dursleys had eaten all the time.

* * *

><p>Shinichi was facing the training dummies, being in his real body for the first time since their training had started. They had spent one whole month on increasing the number of spells that he knew and exercising his magical core. The intensive training should have done the trick of overcoming the restrictions caused by his magic being bound completely most of his life. The goal of this session was to see how much power he could put into his spells now that his body was grown up again. He concentrated and when Sirius, who had put up shields to allow Harry and him to watch from the side of the room, gave the sign, Shinichi started firing his spells, going from low-level spells to the middle-level ones.<p>

He felt great. His magic was in harmony with his body and with the ease of long practice he shot everything from simple disarming spells to powerful cutting curses that cut through the wood of the training dummy as if it was made from butter. He only stopped when he felt exhausted from the casting. And while using up your magic and letting it recharge was part of how you trained your core, overdoing and going to magical exhaustion only hampered your development. You should only go to that lengths if you didn't have any other choice in a fight.

"Great work, Shinichi, the training you did those past months certainly paid off," Sirius complimented.

"Thank you. I feel great with having my real body back. It's certainly a major difference to how I felt when the blocks came off for the first time," Shinichi replied.

"I would think so. Well, let's see, your accuracy with the wand is fantastic and you probably will be most successful in battle with the sniping duelling style. Where Harry has already great accuracy, yours definitely tops his. It's also a benefit, as while your core grew a lot since you found out about being a wizard, it's logically not as far developed as Harry's, which had time to grow since he was a baby. That puts you at a disadvantage against the most powerful opponents. Well, with the sniping style you can avoid exhausting your core too much. My guess would be that once the antidote is ready you would be a match for my cousin Bellatrix, the crazy bitch, but not Voldemort," Sirius analysed, "Which still is really impressive, as there are very few people at Bellatrix's level."

"You mean Bellatrix Lestrange, his second in command, right?" Harry asked to clear things up.

"Correct. She is my first cousin and say what you will about the Blacks, me being the first one to curse their pureblood worshipping arses, the House of Black has always bred powerful members, as back in the past we were known to have a knack for identifying the perfect spouses among our peers. It's actually based on a spell that the Blacks developed in 1101. The head of the house wanted to ensure that his sons and daughters only married spouses that were powerful and would ensure that the children would be as powerful or more powerful as their parents. So after three years of research and experimenting he perfected his magic matching spell. He also was perfect in his use of the disillusionment charm and used it to sneak around to test all possible candidates for marrying his children. Once he had the results, he set out to arrange marriage contracts with the perfect partners.

"Funnily a side effect of the spell was that not only would the magic of the partners match, but in three quarters of the cases their personalities would also complement each other. Which made the couples even more dangerous and powerful, as a harmonious marriage, in case you had a politician for example, led to them using their abilities to further their goals together."

"Wow, that sounds incredible," Shinichi commented, "But why did your house fall as far as you said it did then? I mean, the current couples certainly don't seem to be chosen like that."

"That's because my dear father and uncle refused to listen to my grandfather when he told them to pursue the witches that the spell had turned out to be their perfect matches. After all, they weren't purebloods. With the Grindelwald war there were lesser choices of spouses as many wizards and witches at the age were killed in the war against Grindelwald. Others were already married, as war tends to let people marry younger than normally. My parents were actually second cousins, which simply is sick in my opinion, but it was worse for the spouses that Uncle Cygnus chose for his children. Bellatrix and Rudolphus are first cousins on their mothers' side and Lucius comes from a really inbred line.

"It's no wonder that Bellatrix didn't have a child and that Draco Malfoy is as idiotic as he is. Mental deficiencies from inbred lines are normal. I got lucky that before my father and mother married the lines were using the magic matching spell normally. That meant that while that match was too close to be comfortable, at least there was enough diversity in the gene pool before that to cover it up. And as I don't plan to ever follow their example, should I have children of my own, I would not have to fear them being weaker than me."

"Especially as your girlfriend is Japanese and your family never married this far outside of Europe," Harry couldn't help commented grinning.

"Very true," Sirius admitted.

The three laughed and then Shinichi took a break from training while Harry was up to measure his level.

* * *

><p>Ran wondered what Harry and Conan were doing. She had taken up the invitation of Sonoko to spend time at the Suzuki's house in Izu to save some money on hotel rooms.<p>

"Come on, Ran, get into the water!" Sonoko called over to her.

"Coming, Sonoko," Ran called back and ran down the beach to meet her best friend.

"Gee, Ran, you really need to relax a bit. Enjoy the time you don't need to watch the squirt," Sonoko admonished her, "How else will you ever get a boyfriend?"

"Sonoko, I'm not looking for a boyfriend right now," Ran objected.

"Ah yes, you're still waiting for Shinichi's return. Honestly, that guy really doesn't appreciate you right," Sonoko huffed.

"I didn't say anything about waiting for Shinichi," Ran denied while getting flustered.

Sonoko laughed.

"You should see your face. All red," She teased Ran, "Really, you need to tell him how you feel. Otherwise some other girl that he meets during a case will snatch him up."

Ran didn't like hearing about that, as it actually was one of her fears. That Shinichi would find a prettier girl during a case or that one girl would simply guilt trip him into being with her, playing on being all alone after a murder case.

Sonoko wisely stepped back a little over the dark cloud hanging over Ran's head. While she liked teasing her, she knew when to shut up to not feel the fury of the karate champion.

"I just wonder what Harry and Conan are doing. They didn't even call so far," Ran told Sonoko.

"I wouldn't be too worried. Harry can look after himself and even if he gets involved in way too many criminal cases, he will always look out for his cousin," Sonoko assured Ran, fully believing in that.

"Probably you're right. They're just too busy or having too much fun to think about calling," Ran decided and then decided that some payback was in order for Sonoko's teasing, "Race you into the water."

"Hey, that's unfair," Sonoko shouted while running after Ran, who had a head start.

* * *

><p><strong>And that was it for this chapter. Until next time.<strong>


	27. Progress

**Happy Easter, everybody. Hope you like the new chapter.**

* * *

><p><strong>Progress<strong>

Harry and Shinichi sat in the time compression chamber, alone for the first time since their training had started. Sirius had left just one hour ago to go back to work. His vacation time was used up and they would now work out the kinks of their casting. They had already had six very productive weeks and Sirius had really improved their spell repertoire and their casting skills. Now it was up to them to continue and perfect the things they had worked on and expand their repertoire further. They had lots of spell books in the chamber that were full of spells that could help them in preparing for the fight against the Death Eaters and Voldemort.

"What are we going to work on first?" Shinichi asked, right now in his real body.

"Chain casting I would say. We need to work out spell chains that we can call up at a moment's notice. Not being forced to think about what spell to use next is fairly useful. Once we have the chains, I think we should go for at least ten and then be able to intermix them to react flexibly, we need to also combine it with the shield disc spell. It would be incredible to be able to deflect spells and physical attacks at the same time as casting those spell chains," Harry answered.

"True. We should look up enough spells to have some unpredictability in them. After all, the commonly known chains won't be that effective against the higher ranking Death Eaters. They would probably expect them after the first few minutes," Shinichi commented.

"You're right. But they won't expect Black battle spells to be intermixed with them and only people like Bellatrix Lestrange would be able to recognise them. Only a Black by blood is taught them and only the head of the family can teach it to non-blood-related people," Harry stated.

"Well, let's get started with the first ones and then hit the books when I shrink again. It would be wasting time if we didn't do practical work while I'm seventeen," Shinichi said.

Harry nodded and they went to work. It took three hours before Shinichi felt the effect of the ageing potion ceasing and they got a good bit of work on their first two chains done by that point. Harry took a book on obscure transfiguration spells while Shinichi took one on Japanese illusion spells. It made too much sense to use spells that the British Death Eaters wouldn't know about and therefore be hard-pressed to counter.

* * *

><p>Shiho sat in front of her work station. She knew that Shinichi and Harry were doing well inside the chamber. The report that Sirius had given them was promising. They were becoming stronger fast and once she had found the antidote to the APTX 4869, they would be able to get their normal bodies back. She knew that she was close. She hated admitting it, but she missed being able to exchange ideas with Harry. Where Shinichi had needed some time to warm up to her, Harry had had an easier time. They actually worked very well together.<p>

"Hey, sister, how is it going?" Akemi asked.

"I'm making progress, Akemi," Shiho replied, "I just need to find a way to connect the ageing component of the liquor with the stabiliser and the control component to not have us age too much. We only want to get our normal ages back, not become old and wrinkly."

"Yes, that would be a serious turn-off for any relationship you might want," Akemi teased.

"Akemi," Shiho sighed.

"No, you know that I'm right. I can see how you look at Harry," Akemi commented confidently.

"He would never date someone like me," Shiho denied.

"Why not? He certainly values you and your opinion a lot. And you're close enough in age that there won't be any problems. He's just one year younger than you," Akemi stated.

"I worked for the organisation. My poison killed dozens of people," Shiho exclaimed.

"You didn't want to develop it as a poison, we both know that. You also were forced to join the organisation. It didn't help that our parents were part of it and had started the project you were then told to continue after their deaths. What choice did you have?" Akemi asked.

"It doesn't change the facts," Shiho scoffed.

"No, but Harry is smart enough to understand. He's been in pretty tough situations before as well. He admitted that he had to steal food and lie to people while growing up, simply to not get punished by his relatives. Then the stuff that happened at Hogwarts while he attended there. He has been forced to kill as well to save his life when he was just eleven. He broke the law, officially, by helping a wanted fugitive escape, no matter if he was innocent or not. He unwillingly participated in the rebirth of Voldemort. It isn't any different to your drug that was meant to stave off death turning out as a poison that can't be detected during autopsy and being used by the organisation. You aren't a bad person," Akemi insisted.

"Still, if all that was true, why would Harry choose me over any other girl that he could date? He's famous, both as a wizard as well as a detective. He's the Hawk. One of the best high school detectives in Japan," Shiho asked.

"I think you should simply give it a chance once you have your true body back. I know that taking a leap can be scary, but if you don't do it, you will probably regret it forever. You will ponder about the what-ifs and could it have been possible. I was shocked when I found out that Dai was with the FBI, but I loved him, therefore I kept quiet. I hope I can reconnect with him when this is over. When you find a person that's special to you, Shiho, hold onto him with all your might. Love isn't logical. It also isn't always easy, but nothing worth having, will normally simply be given to you. Fight for it," Akemi advised.

"I still don't get how you can still love that guy," Shiho said.

"He's a wonderful man. And I know he loves me too. I wish I could call him, but right now that would be too dangerous. I won't risk both of our lives until we can get the leaders of the organisation rounded up," Akemi replied.

"Thank you, I would hate to have to force you to stay hidden. In that regard the kid form was actually useful," Shiho commented.

Akemi nodded.

* * *

><p>Back in England the spirit of the people was very subdued. While there was still hope, in the form of the organisations Freedom and Liberty, people felt how their government had changed. The message from the Weasley wedding that it wasn't simply one minister dying in an accident, but You-Know-Who taking over, had spread comparatively fast, but it didn't do much good. People were too scared to really resist the Death Eaters. Except for a few.<p>

There was a major shift towards the joining of the two organisations. Some people also called for Harry Potter to come back and save them again, but nobody really knew where he had gone to. Some were honest enough that they admitted that with how he had been vilified in the press, he had no reason to return. He didn't have any duty to them. They had chased him away. Many more meanwhile didn't care and simply wanted to be saved again without doing anything. Those that held out hope turned to listening to the pirate sender 'Resistance Watch' that had had started the day after the attack on Hogwarts, which had barely been stopped.

Resistance Watch gave information on the true goings on in their country and the effort made to counter what the Death Eaters did. There were also helpful directives what to do to get to safety, especially if you were muggleborn, and how to reach Freedom and Liberty. The system was of course multi-layered to not be used for ambushes. But nobody needed to be told that on the radio. Successful attacks on Death Eater hideouts were published, as well as the names of their victims that were suppressed from being printed by the Daily Prophet.

The ones to run the pirate sender were Lee Jordan, Fred and George Weasley and whichever member of Freedom was available. The two groups were well-prepared to act from the shadows for a while and they had more than enough supplies as well as gold in reserve to last for at least one year. With the promise that Harry, Sirius and Shinichi would come to England in October, they were all determined to hold out until then. Two months, while they would be hard, would be possible to get through. And everybody knew that Harry wouldn't come back if he didn't have a plan to finally take out Voldemort.

In a stroke of genius Fred, George, Neville, Ernie and Remus had sneaked into Hogwarts after the attack had barely been thrown back and had raided the castle of anything that could have been of use to the Death Eaters. With one former marauder and the twins that had memorised the Marauder's Map, they had easily got inside and had looked for things that their groups would need and ones that they didn't want to fall into the hands of the Death Eaters. That included raiding the whole restricted section of the library. They would give the books back after the war was won, but nobody wanted those books available to their enemies.

Ernie found the secret stash of gold that Dumbledore had put away and they took it all with them. They were sure that most of it hadn't been earned legally by the old MOB anyway, therefore it would serve fighting against the Death Eaters much better than helping a bunch of traitors. Not to mention that the traitors wouldn't be able to hold the school once Voldemort came here in person. It was only a question of time. And with the Ministry in their hands they could, seemingly legally, demand that the school surrendered to their demands. After all, the Ministry gave a large amount of the money with which the school was run each year.

Neville also took some seedlings of plants that they would need to keep brewing potions for their group. They raided the supply cabinets down in the dungeons as well. Nobody wanted to run out of things like skelegrow, as nasty as it might taste, pepper-up, polyjuice or essence of dittany. It was better to take the things they could now than have to buy them later under great danger. The longer they could avoid it, the better. Even if sending house elves to France to get these would work for a while.

The two organisations were quick to put several safe houses and their meeting points under fidelius charm, not only the shop of the twins. It was too dangerous to keep them accessible by their enemies and the charm wasn't hard to cast. You just needed to make sure that you chose reliable secret keepers. To avoid problems like the thing with Pettigrew, they decided on a chain of secrets. They not only hid the secret of the locations in a person, the hid the identity of the secret keeper under two further fidelius charms. If you didn't manage to get past both first layers of secrets, you wouldn't be able to find the secret keepers of the locations. That meant, the secret keeper of the location couldn't tell anybody that he was that secret keeper. It was one of Mad-Eye's schemes to increase security.

While it was a bit complicated, it added a lot of safety. The two groups had secured twenty houses all over the country where they could hide or take injured people to for treatment. The houses were stocked with all kinds of basic potions and first aid equipment. The groups also had emergency procedures in case some of their members were identified. Moody had insisted on another fidelius charm to hide the group members' identities, which nobody had a problem with. The former Order of the Phoenix members remembered too well how they had been picked off one by one in the last war. The Death Eaters got away because nobody could see their faces. If making people forget who the members of their organisations were worked, all the better. Nobody wanted to get unwanted visits from the corrupt government after all.

* * *

><p>Harry was hard pressed to defend against Shinichi's newest spell chain. The other teen had come up with a highly effective chain and was right now working on coordinating it with the shield discs. Thanks to having grown up in Japan, the native magic was very comfortable for Shinichi to use and he integrated five highly nasty spells into his chain of twenty spells. One spell would shrink your clothes at rapid speed, which was highly effective in restricting your opponent's movement, one spell would make you believe that your skin was frozen, one would give the illusion of an attack on all pain receptors on the skin without actually doing damage, the next was to parch your mouth as if you hadn't had anything to drink for three days and the last two worked in combination with each other. One would let your hair grow to give the girl in the fairy tale Rapunzel competition and the second one used said hair to tie you up in it.<p>

It was highly effective if you got hit. In between Shinichi had weaved standard duelling spells, among them the stunner, disarming charm and tripping hex. He didn't use any spells that needed a high level of power, but those that could incapacitate people easily if they got hit by just one of the spells. If he could coordinate it with his shield discs perfectly, he would be a very hard opponent. Harry needed to dodge most of the spells Shinichi had in his chains, as he had experienced what getting hit could do to you. The one time he got hit, Shinichi had mercilessly pressed his advantage and decided the duel for him.

Right now Harry was working on counter strategies to Shinichi's chains. He had to be able to think from the other side of the duel after all to be able to predict what the Death Eaters would do if they were faced with such an opponent. Harry turned to transfigure debris into animals, or enlarged them, to intercept spells coming at him. Finally he managed to create a wall to go between him and Shinichi's spells. They had agreed that Harry, for the test of their strategies, would refrain from using the shield disc spell, as it was improbable that their opponents would know it.

It was a spell invented by the Blacks after all and there were no Blacks besides Bellatrix in the Death Eater ranks anymore. Finally Shinichi called for a halt of their duel, as he needed a break.

"The chain seems to work the way you want it, Shinichi," Harry commented.

"Yes, but with your tactic of transfiguring objects as interception I need to work out a few more things to deal with that. While I can work it around normal shield charms, as we tested during the last duel, this tactic would put me at a disadvantage. I'll have to incorporate some spells to deal with that. Perhaps _finite_ would be a good idea to throw in randomly," Shinichi pondered.

"That would undo my enlargements on the debris and turn the animals back to the true form," Harry nodded, "And it's too unconventional for Death Eaters to expect it. They are fairly unimaginative with their used spells."

Both had watched Sirius' memories from battles in the first war against Voldemort and knew certain duelling preferences of Death Eaters from back then. The most dangerous ones.

"I think it would be a good idea if we trained to switch from one chain that works to another using a bridge spell like that. I mean, _finite_ is just pointing your wand at the target you want to hit," Harry commented, "You can enter any kind of new wand movement from that in a split second."

"True. We should train that as well, once we have five or so chains worked out," Shinichi nodded.

The two went back to work. There was still a lot to do before they could leave the chamber and return to normal time.

* * *

><p>Voldemort wasn't happy. While the takeover of the Ministry of Magic had worked as intended, with little to no resistance, he hadn't got Hogwarts like he had planned and the intended example that he wanted to make out of those attending the Weasley wedding had been thwarted by the wards holding up against his Death Eaters. While he didn't have any losses to count for that battle, it was annoying that he couldn't get into the place that was his birth right. Nonetheless, he was now the de facto ruler of the country and through the Ministry he could demand that the school followed his directives.<p>

As soon as the new school year started, he would install his educational program there and teach the children how to behave. He would show them that muggles were nothing more than animals, living in their own dirt and filth. He would have them taught in the Dark Arts, ready followers once they graduated from school. It was actually only the resistance of Freedom and Liberty that prevented his total victory. But he would get them soon. With the power of the Ministry behind him, it was only a question of time. The taboo on his name would tell them their positions soon enough. And then he would find Potter and annihilate the one spoken of in the prophecy. No matter what the rest of the prophecy said, he would be the immortal ruler of the country.

Right now his top Death Eaters were assembled to discuss the strategy for ratting out the members of Freedom and Liberty.

"Alright, we have secured one major victory in taking over the Ministry," Voldemort said, sitting behind the desk of the Minister of Magic.

He had decided that this meeting would be held here, to demonstrate their victory. While he would let his imperius puppet Thicknesse play Minister for the public, after all, the job needed to much parchment work to be done, he was the true power in the country and he wanted to demonstrate it today.

"But that doesn't mean that we're done with the takeover. Hogwarts is still resisting, even if they will have to cave in once the new school year starts. They can't refuse the children entry and then we will be able to strike. For the wellbeing of the children they will obey," Voldemort commented, "The more pressing issue are the organisations Freedom and Liberty. What can you tell me about the identified members and where they hide?"

"Master, there is a problem? All our lists that we put together after the confrontations over the last year have gone blank. We can't read them anymore," Lucius stated.

"How can that be?" Voldemort demanded to know.

"Probably a fidelius charm," Snape offered his opinion, "Those that were previously part of the Order of the Phoenix would know about it, among them Lupin and Moody. While I forgot if they were proven members of Freedom and Liberty, I remember them being part of the Order and leaving it."

"True, Moody is cunning like that," Voldemort admitted, "He had given us lots of trouble the last time we were close to taking over the country. And Lupin was a friend of Potter. The werewolf that thinks he is a wizard."

Some sneers could be seen, most strongly on the face of Bellatrix, who thought it a personal insult that her niece had married that half breed.

"Well, as they seem to have forgotten to ward the secret of the former membership of the Order, Severus, please write up a list with those you remember from that organisation. We will target them first. It won't take too long for them to come out into the open once we attack the muggleborns with the might of the Ministry. Lucius and Yaxley, you were in charge of that operation. How far are the preparations?"

"We are ready to start. We have a research report from one of the unspeakables that is on our side that the magic that the mudbloods have was stolen from witches and wizards, which turned them into squibs. We are going to set up a commission where all the mudbloods will have to register or they will be persecuted. Of course we will just send them to the dementors to feed them, which will fulfil our part of the agreement with them. It will rat out those mudbloods that haven't fled so far, which some did shortly after Dumbledore's death. They will have to be rounded up once we are ready to conquer the continent," Lucius answered, "Yaxley suggested to have that idiot Umbridge head the commission. While she is useless in any kind of advanced magic, she is a pureblood supremacist and would gleefully assist our plans there."

"Hm, she was the one to keep Hogwarts under her thumb in 1995/96 when Fudge was too cowardly to admit that I had returned, giving us enough time to rally our forces. I remember your son reporting her being sympathetic to our cause," Voldemort looked at Lucius.

"Yes, my Lord," Lucius confirmed, "She was also very outspoken against Potter and assigned him lots of detentions, according to rumours she had him cut open his own hand with a blood quill repeatedly."

"Let's see how she fares doing so. If she doesn't work out, we can simply push her into a position where she fits. While she has no direct use to us, she's a pureblood and on our side, willing to aid our cause," Voldemort decided, "Now, once we make the dissidents at Hogwarts surrender, we will install our own members as teachers there to ensure that the children will be taught the proper way, which means we will have to undo years of brainwashing to the way Dumbledore wanted things to go."

"Who will be getting that honour?" Bellatrix asked.

"Severus, you have been there the longest, therefore you will take over as headmaster. Alecto, you have a way to make even the most rebellious children obey you, which is why you shall take over the new subject of Dark Arts. With Severus being headmaster, we need a new Potions Master. Not to mention that somebody needs to overwork Muggle Studies. The children should learn what kind of dirty animals the muggles are, not the nonsense that the now diseased Charity Burbage wanted them to believe, about them being equal to wizards," Voldemort sneered, "Rastaban, you were quite good at Potions, correct?"

"I got an E in my NEWTs, my Lord," Rastaban Lestrange answered, "I'm not at the level of Severus, but I'm more than capable of teaching the subject up to NEWT level."

"Good, then you will take over that class and become the head of Slytherin house, now that Severus is headmaster. You shouldn't have any trouble with them, Severus has done great work in the past to prepare them for our takeover. We will retain the other teachers, as long as they weren't Dumbledore's lackeys."

"My Lord, may I suggest getting rid of the ghost teaching history?" Severus asked.

"A good suggestion. We need the children to know the glory of pureblood achievements, not the drivel about the beast rebellions," Voldemort agreed.

"My wife Narcissa is very well-versed in History if Magic," Lucius spoke up.

"Good, then she will be installed as new History teacher. I will brief her to also include important wizarding traditions into the course work. It isn't acceptable that our valued traditions are forgotten, because our children don't learn them at Hogwarts," Voldemort declared, "Well, Amycus, how would you like the Muggle Studies position?"

"It would be my honour to bring the children onto the right path, my lord," Amycus Carrow replied.

"Very good. We will see if we need to replace other teachers as well. For now those are the most important positions. Once Severus has finished his list, we will put out wanted posters for the identified former members of the Order. Let's see how they can work while being hunted by the whole country. Oh, and even if he isn't here, put Potter up for being wanted. We won't hurt our finances by covering all bases. He is mine to deal with, so just put on the posters that he's wanted alive. The others are to be brought in dead or alive. I think being identified as possible state enemies should do the trick," Voldemort stated.

The Death Eaters nodded and then the meeting continued with determining which targets to hit next.

* * *

><p>Unknown to the Death Eaters, the quill that wrote down everything that was spoken inside the Minister of Magic's office inside one of the safe houses of Freedom was busy documenting all their plans. The resistance would be ready when they were going to strike next.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>And that's it for this time. Until next.<strong>


End file.
